NUMBERS, FACTS AND TRENDS SHAPING THE WORLD
FOR RELEASE JUNE 22, 2016
FOR MEDIA OR OTHER INQUIRIES:
Carroll Doherty, Director of Political Research
Jocelyn Kiley, Associate Director, Research
Bridget Jameson, Communications Associate
202.419.4372
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RECOMMENDED CITATION: Pew Research Center, June, 2016, “Partisanship and Political Animosity in 2016”
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About Pew Research Center
Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes
and trends shaping America and the world. It does not take policy positions. It conducts public
opinion polling, demographic research, content analysis and other data-driven social science
research. The Center studies U.S. politics and policy; journalism and media; internet, science and
technology; religion and public life; Hispanic trends; global attitudes and trends; and U.S. social
and demographic trends. All of the Center’s reports are available at www.pewresearch.org. Pew
Research Center is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts, its primary funder. This report was
made possible by The Pew Charitable Trusts, which received support for the survey from The
William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
© Pew Research Center 2016
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Table of Contents
Overview ................................................................................................................................................... 1
1. Feelings about partisans and the parties ........................................................................................... 9
2. The roots of partisanship ................................................................................................................... 19
3. Partisan environments, views of political conversations and disagreements ............................... 25
4. Partisan stereotypes, views of Republicans and Democrats as neighbors .................................... 31
5. Views of parties’ positions on issues, ideologies ............................................................................. 39
6. How do the political parties make you feel? .................................................................................... 51
7. Partisan views of 2016 candidates, Barack and Michelle Obama, views of the election ............. 59
Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................... 65
Methodology........................................................................................................................................... 67
Appendix A: Measures and scales ........................................................................................................ 73
Appendix B: Topline questionnaire ....................................................................................................... 75
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The 2016 campaign is unfolding against a backdrop of intense partisan division and animosity.
Partisans’ views of the opposing party are now more negative than at any point in nearly a quarter
of a century.
For the first time in surveys dating to 1992, majorities in both parties express not just unfavorable
but very unfavorable views of the other party. And today, sizable shares of both Democrats and
Republicans say the other party stirs feelings of not just frustration, but fear and anger.
More than half of Democrats (55%) say the
Republican Party makes them “afraid,” while
49% of Republicans say the same about the
Democratic Party. Among those highly engaged
in politics – those who say they vote regularly
and either volunteer for or donate to campaigns
– fully 70% of Democrats and 62% of
Republicans say they are afraid of the other
party.
Across a number of realms, negative feelings
about the opposing party are as powerful – and
in many cases more powerful – as are positive
feelings about one’s own party. While partisans
generally agree with their party’s policy positions
at least most of the time, just 16% of Republicans
and 20% of Democrats say they “almost always”
agree with their party’s policy stances. By
contrast, more than twice as many Republicans
and Democrats (44% each) say they “almost
never” agree with the other party’s positions.
These sentiments are not just limited to views of
the parties and their policy proposals; they have
a personal element as well. Asked to rate several
groups on a 0-100 “thermometer” – where 0 is
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the coldest, most negative rating and 100 represents the warmest, most positive rating –
Republicans and Democrats give very low ratings to the people in the opposing party. Democrats
give Republicans a mean rating of 31 – far lower than the average ratings for five other groups on
the thermometer, including military personnel and elected officials. Republicans give Democrats a
mean rating of 29; only elected officials (30) and
atheists (36) are nearly as low.
Yet Democrats’ thermometer ratings of Donald
Trump and Republicans’ ratings of Hillary
Clinton are lower – much lower. The average
rating for Trump among Democrats is 11 on the
0-100 scale. Fully 82% of Democrats give Trump
a “very cold” rating (less than 25), including
about two-thirds (68%) who give him a zero, the
lowest possible rating. (For an analysis of
Trump’s thermometer ratings among
Republicans, see “More ‘warmth’ for Trump
among GOP voters concerned by immigrants,
diversity.”)
Clinton gets an average rating of 12 among
Republicans. Among the 76% of Republicans
who give Clinton a very cold rating, 59% rate her
at zero.
These are among the principal findings of Pew
Research Center’s study of partisanship and
political animosity, conducted among 4,385
adults from March 2-28 and April 5-May 2 on
the Center’s nationally representative American
Trends Panel. This report was made possible by
The Pew Charitable Trusts, which received
support for the survey from The William and
Flora Hewlett Foundation. The surveys were conducted before Trump and Clinton became their
parties’ presumptive presidential nominees.
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For Democrats, no single critique resonates more than the notion that Republicans are closedminded. Fully 70% of Democrats say that Republicans are more closed-minded than other
Americans. And nearly as many Democrats (67%) say the people in their party are more openminded than other Americans.
Fewer Democrats (42%) say
Republicans are more dishonest
than other Americans, 35% say
they are more immoral and 33%
say they are more unintelligent.
Many Republicans, by contrast,
think Democrats fall short on
several traits. While more than
half of Republicans (52%) view
Democrats as more closedminded than other Americans,
nearly as many say Democrats
are more immoral (47%), lazier
(46%) and more dishonest
(45%).
Not only do almost half of
Republicans say Democrats are
lazier than other Americans,
most (59%) also say the
members of their own party are
more hard-working. And about half of Republicans (51%) view Republicans as more moral than
other Americans.
Despite these widespread partisan stereotypes, most Democrats and Republicans stop short of
saying that it would be more difficult to get along with a new community member who belonged to
the other party. About three-in-ten Democrats (31%) and 27% of Republicans say it would be
harder to get along with a new person in their community if they belonged to the other party.
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On the other hand, somewhat greater shares of
Democrats (42%) and Republicans (43%) say
it would be easier to get along with a new
neighbor who belongs to their own party.
While the current partisan environment does
not for the most part appear to be turning
neighbor against neighbor, it may be making
for some difficult conversations about politics.
Both Republicans and Democrats are about as
likely to say that talking about politics with
people whom they disagree with is “stressful
and frustrating” as say such conversations are
“interesting and informative.”
And majorities in both parties (65% of
Republicans, 63% of Democrats) say that
when they talk to people on the other side,
they usually end up finding they have less in
common politically than they thought.
Most find little common ground with
those they disagree with politically
% who say that talking about politics with people they
disagree with is generally …
Stressful and
Interesting and
frustrating
informative
Total
46
Republican
51
50
Democrat
48
46
52
% who say that when talking about politics with people
they disagree with, they usually find they have ___
politically than they thought
Less in common
More in common
Total
61
36
Republican
65
33
Democrat
63
34
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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Our study of polarization in 2014 found that a major element of partisan polarization “has been
the growing contempt that many Republicans and Democrats have for the opposing party.” Since
then, levels of mutual contempt have grown, and “many” has
become “most,” according to a separate survey of 2,008 adults,
conducted on landlines and cellphones from April 12-19, 2016.
Today, 58% of Republicans have a very unfavorable impression
of the Democratic Party, up from 46% in 2014 and just 32%
during the 2008 election year. Among Democrats, highly
negative views of the GOP have followed a similar trajectory –
from 37% in 2008 to 43% in 2014 and 55% currently.
To gauge the depth of partisan dislike, the 2014 survey asked
those who expressed very unfavorable opinions of the opposing
party if they would go so far as to say “the party’s policies are so
misguided that they threaten the nation’s well-being.”
Over the past two years, as the numbers of Republicans and
Democrats with very unfavorable views of the opposing party
have grown, so too have the shares saying the other party
threatens the nation’s well-being: 45% of Republicans now view
Democratic policies as a threat, up from 37% in 2014. And 41% of
Democrats say the same about the Republican Party’s policies, an
increase of 10 percentage points from two years ago.
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The power of negative feeling toward the opposition is reflected in the reasons people give for
identifying with their own party. Majorities in both parties point to the positive impact of their
own party’s policies as a major reason for their choice of parties – but nearly as many cite the
harm caused by the opposing party’s policies.
And independents, who now outnumber both Republicans and Democrats and overwhelmingly
“lean” to one party or the other, are far more likely to cite negative than positive factors for why
they form their loose partisan ties.
Among Republicans, 68% say a major reason they identify with the GOP is that “the Democratic
Party’s policies are harmful to the country,” while 64% say it is because they think “the Republican
Party’s policies are good for the country.”
More Democrats cite the positive effects of their party’s policies than the negative consequences of
GOP policies, but the margin is modest: 68% say a major reason they are a Democrat is that the
Democratic Party’s policies are beneficial for the country, while 62% say a major reason is because
Republican policies harm the country.
Why identify as a Republican or Democrat? Majorities cite harm from opposing
party’s policies
% saying each is __ for identifying as a Republican or a Democrat
Among Republicans: Why do you identify as Republican?
Major reason
Minor reason
Among Democrats: Why do you identify as Democrat?
Not a reason
No answer
Dem policies
bad for country
19 11
Dem policies
good for country
27 8
Rep policies bad
for country
68
Rep policies good
for country
Have lot in common
with other Reps
Not much in
common with Dems
Always been a Rep
64
38
36
26
23
30
23
26
41
52
68
62
Have lot in common
with other Dems
Always been a Dem
Not much in
common with Reps
25 6
41
36
31
22
35
13
21
25
38
31
35
Notes: Question about reasons for identifying as a Republican asked only of Republicans (N=1,145); question about reasons for identifying as
a Democrat asked only of Democrats (N=1,548). Figures may not add to 100% because of rounding.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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Other reasons for identifying with a party,
such as having a lot in common with its
members or having long-standing ties with a
party, are cited far less frequently as major
factors for choosing to identify with a party.
Partisan ‘leaning’ motivated far more
by negative than positive factors
% saying each is a major reason for leaning toward
the Republican Party or Democratic Party
Lean Republican
For independents, by contrast, negative
motives are cited most frequently among the
reasons for leaning toward a party. Among
Republican-leaning independents, 55% say a
major reason for leaning toward the GOP is
that Democratic policies are harmful to the
country. Just 30% cite the positive effects of
Republican policies.
For Democratic leaners, far more also point to
the negative consequences of the other party’s
policies (51%) rather than the positive effects
of their own party’s policies (34%) as a reason
to associate, however loosely, with their own
party.
Lean Democrat
55
Other party's policies
bad for country
51
30
Own party's policies
good for country
Have a lot in common
with own party
Not much in common
with other party
34
19
18
19
18
Note: Questions asked of those who do not identify with a party;
Those who lean toward the Republican Party (N=796) and those
who lean toward the Democratic Party (N=759), respectively.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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Having a friend from the other party matters, especially for Republicans. In both parties, those who
have few or no friends in the other party are more likely to have “very cold” feelings about the
people in that party. This is especially the case for Republicans: Those with few or no Democratic
friends are twice as likely to rate Democrats very coldly than are Republicans with at least some
Democratic friends (62% vs. 30%).
Most Republicans and Democrats want compromise on their terms. Majorities of Democrats (62%)
and Republicans (58%) say their party should get more of what it wants on the key issues facing
the nation. Partisans with colder feelings toward the other party are even more likely to say their
own side should get more of what it wants.
Four-in-ten Republicans give Michelle Obama a
zero. Republicans feel very negatively toward
Barack Obama, but a majority also gives “very
cold” thermometer ratings to Michelle Obama.
Fully 81% of Republicans feel very coldly
toward Barack Obama, including 59% who
give him a zero on the 0-100 scale. Nearly sixin-ten Republicans (59%) give very cold
ratings to Michelle Obama; 40% of
Republicans give her a zero.
Parties and issues. Majorities of Republicans
and Democrats say they agree with their
parties’ positions on nine issues tested.
However, “strong” agreement varies widely by
issue: Republicans are more likely to strongly
agree with the GOP’s position on illegal
immigration and gun policy, while Democrats
are most likely to strongly agree with
Democratic positions on health care, abortion
and climate change.
Most Republicans feel ‘very coldly’
toward Barack and Michelle Obama
% who rate _____ on a ‘feeling thermometer’ from 0
(coldest rating) to 100 (warmest rating) …
Among Republicans
Very cold
Somewhat cold
Barack Obama
Michelle Obama
NET
81
59
5
10
69
Among Democrats
Very warm
Somewhat warm
Barack Obama
68
Michelle Obama
67
86
15
10
NET
83
78
Note: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24); somewhat
cold (25-49); neutral (50); somewhat warm (51-75); and
very warm (76-100).
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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1. Feelings about partisans and the parties
Partisans’ dislike of the opposing party is part and parcel of American politics, but recent years
have witnessed a growing intensity in these feelings.
For the first time in more than two decades of Pew Research Center surveys, majorities of
partisans have not only an unfavorable view of the other party, but a very unfavorable one. Today,
55% of Democrats and 58% of Republicans view the other party in deeply negative terms.
Intensely negative ratings of the
opposing party were far less common
in the past, even in presidential
election years: In 2000 only about a
quarter of both Democrats (23%) and
Republicans (26%) had a very
unfavorable view of the other party;
by 2012 that had risen to more than
four-in-ten.
In just the two years since Pew
Research Center documented this
trend in “Political Polarization in the
American Public” in 2014, the share
rating the other party very
unfavorably has increased by 12
percentage points in both parties.
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This strong dislike translates
into an even greater sense of risk
for many on both sides of the
aisle. As in 2014, most of those
who view the other party very
unfavorably say that the
opposing party’s policies “are so
misguided that they threaten the
nation’s well-being.” Still, a
larger share now says this: 45%
of Republicans now say that
Democratic policies threaten the
nation, while 41% of Democrats
view GOP policies in equally
stark terms (up from 31% in
2014).
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As others have documented,
data from the American
National Election Studies
(ANES) also show an increase
in negative feelings about the
opposing party. For decades
the ANES have asked
Republicans and Democrats
to rate their feelings toward
their own party and the other
on a 0-to-100 thermometer
scale (a slightly different
“feeling thermometer” is used
throughout the rest of this
report).1
Since 1964, Republicans’ and
Democrats’ feelings toward
the other party have grown
much colder. The share of
both parties with cold
feelings toward the opposing
party has steadily increased
over the past five decades,
from around 30% in 1964, to
about 45% in 1984, to
roughly six-in-ten in 2004; at
the time of the most recent
ANES in 2012, nearly 80% of
Democrats and Republicans
alike gave the other party a
cold rating.
1
Cold, negative feelings for the other party on the rise;
warm, positive feelings for own side steady since 1964
Among Republicans
Among Democrats
% who rate the other party ...
NET cold
Dem Party
66
64
38
10
64
76
78
71
62
50
42
44
50
31
NET cold
Rep Party
77
32
43
25
24
29
15
11 Very cold
Dem Party
88
00
12
14
64
76
16
Very cold
Rep Party
88
00
12
Among Republicans
Among Democrats
% who rate their own party ...
89
89
92
NET warm 86
Rep Party
56
53
68
90
85
86
95
89
NET warm
Dem Party
75
50
53
36
39
34
Very warm
Rep Party
64
76
88
00
Very warm
Dem Party
12
64
76
88
00
12
Notes: From 1964 to 1976, question asked for feelings toward “Republicans” and
“Democrats.” From 1978 to 2012, question asked about “the Republican Party” and “the
Democratic Party.” Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24), NET cold (0-49); very
warm (76-100), NET warm (51-100).
Trend source: American National Election Studies 1964-2012.
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The wording of the ANES question and the question in the March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016, Pew Research Center survey
differ somewhat and are not directly comparable: Since 1978, the ANES has asked people to rate “the Republican Party” and
“the Democratic Party,” while the measure used elsewhere in this report asks about “Republicans” and “Democrats” (from
1964 to 1976 ANES asked about “Republicans” and “Democrats”). In addition, most ANES interviews are conducted face-toface, while the current American Trends Panel survey is conducted online and by mail.
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A significant part of the growth in cold feelings has been the growth of very cold (0-24) feelings for
the other side. In 1964, just 10% of Republicans and 14% of Democrats said they felt very cold
toward the other side. In 2012, 44% of Republicans and 50% of Democrats were very cold. Over
this same period, Americans’ overall warmth toward their own party has been largely stable, but
intensely warm feelings are lower than they were in the 1960s and early 1970s.
In the current survey, when asked to rate a number of groups on a “feeling thermometer” between
0 and 100 – where 0 is the coldest, most negative rating and 100 represents the warmest, most
positive – Democrats give Republicans an average rating of just 31, and Republicans give
Democrats a similarly low rating of 29.
Democrats feel colder toward Republicans than
they do toward any other group asked about.
Even elected officials in Washington receive an
average rating 15 degrees warmer (46) than
Republicans. Republicans rate Democrats (29)
just as poorly as they do elected officials in
Washington (30).
Ratings of members of one’s own party are
substantially warmer, though a sizable partisan
gap in feelings about one’s own party is evident:
On average, Democrats rate members of their
own party a 76 on the 0-100 scale, while
Republicans give an average 68 rating to their copartisans.
Although the average rating Republicans and
Democrats give to one another is roughly the
same, Republicans are somewhat more likely
than Democrats to choose a rating for the
opposing party that is “cold” (0-49 on the 0-100
scale): 69% of Republicans rate their feelings for
Democrats as cold, compared with 61% of
Democrats who say this about Republicans.
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And Democrats are somewhat more likely than Republicans to give members of their own party
“warm” ratings (51-100 on the 0-100 scale). Three-quarters of Democrats (75%) give a warm
rating to Democrats; about two-thirds of
Republicans (67%) feel warmly toward
Republicans less likely than Democrats
Republicans. Much of the difference comes
to feel warmly toward their own party
from a 13-percentage-point gap between the
% who rate ____ on a ‘feeling thermometer’ from
0 (coldest rating) to 100 (warmest rating) …
shares of Democrats (52%) and Republicans
Members of other party
(39%) who give their co-partisans a “very
Very cold
Somewhat cold
warm” rating (a rating of 76 or higher).
Compared with self-identified partisans,
independents who lean to a party largely share
the negative views of the other party, but hold
decidedly colder views of the party they lean
toward. Though roughly seven-in-ten
Republicans (69%) are cold toward
Democrats, that falls to 57% among
Republican leaners. Nearly as many
Democratic leaners as Democrats have cold
feelings about Republicans (55% vs. 61%). And
while 75% of Democrats give members of their
own party a warm rating, just 45% of
Democratic leaners give Democrats a warm
rating. A similar 29-point gap exists between
Republicans (67%) and Republican leaners
(38%) in their warm ratings of Republicans.
Republican
46
Democrat
24
41
Among independents ...
Lean Republican
Lean Democrat
61
20
38
57
19
31
NET
69
55
24
Members of own party
Very warm
Republican
39
Democrat
52
Among independents ...
Lean Republican
17
20
Lean Democrat
21
Somewhat warm
NET
67
27
23
24
75
38
45
Note: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24), somewhat
cold (25-49), neutral (50), somewhat warm (51-75),
very warm (76-100).
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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Partisans who are highly engaged in politics –
those who nearly always vote and have either
donated money to or volunteered for a
campaign in the past year – feel more coldly
toward members of the other party and more
warmly toward members of their own party
than people who are less engaged in politics.
Highly engaged Democrats are more likely
than less engaged Democrats to express cold
feelings about members of the GOP: 76% give
Republicans a cold rating, including 51% who
give a very cold rating. In comparison, 60% of
those who are moderately engaged (regular
voters who do not volunteer or give money)
give a cold rating, along with 56% of those
with lower levels of political engagement.
The relationship between political engagement
and coldness toward those affiliated with the
opposing party is less striking among
Republicans. Highly engaged Republicans are
more likely than those who are moderately
engaged to express very cold feelings toward
Democrats (56% vs. 42%), but are only
modestly more likely to express cold views
overall (75%, compared with about seven-inten among the less engaged).
Highly engaged partisans are colder to
the other party, warmer to their own
% who rate ____ on a ‘feeling thermometer’ from
0 (coldest rating) to 100 (warmest rating) …
Members of other party
Very cold
Somewhat cold
Political engagement
Among Republicans...
High
Medium
56
20
42
Low
25
46
Among Democrats...
High
40
Low
38
67
70
24
51
Medium
NET
75
76
24
19
60
18
56
Members of own party
Very warm
Somewhat warm
Political engagement
Among Republicans...
High
NET
50
Medium
38
Low
36
Among Democrats...
High
76
26
68
30
59
23
66
24
90
Medium
49
24
74
Low
50
22
71
Notes: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24), somewhat
cold (25-49), neutral (50), somewhat warm (51-75), very warm
Engagement is related to warmth toward one’s
(76-100). Engagement scale based on voting frequency, campaign
own side to similar degrees in both parties:
volunteerism and/or contributions. See Appendix A for details.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
90% of highly engaged Democrats express
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warm feelings for Democrats, while smaller
shares of the moderately engaged (74%) and
least engaged (71%) say the same. Two-thirds of highly engaged Democrats (66%) go so far as to
give a very warm rating, compared with about half of less engaged Democrats. Among
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Republicans, there is a similar 17-point gap in warm ratings between the most and least engaged
(76% vs. 59%, respectively).
Over the past several decades, not only have
views of the opposing party become more
deeply negative, but both parties’ members
have become more consistently ideological.
The current survey finds that ideologically
consistent partisans – Democrats with
political values that are consistently liberal
and Republicans with values that are
consistently conservative – hold some of the
most negative views of the other party.2
Among Republicans, 82% of those with
consistently conservative political values say
they have cold feelings toward Democrats,
compared with 72% of those who have values
that are mostly conservative and 62% of
Republicans who take about an equal number
of conservative and liberal positions.
The pattern is similar – and somewhat more
pronounced – among Democrats. Eight-in-ten
Democrats who take down-the-line liberal
positions feel coldly toward Republicans, on
par with the share of consistently conservative
Republicans who feel coldly toward
Democrats. Far fewer Democrats with mostly
liberal positions (61%) feel coldly toward
Republicans, and just 47% of Democrats with
ideologically mixed views rate members of the
GOP coldly.
2
Consistent ideological values tied to
negative feeling about the other party
% who rate ____ on a ‘feeling thermometer’ from
0 (coldest rating) to 100 (warmest rating) …
Members of other party
Very cold
Somewhat cold
Ideological consistency
Among Republicans...
Consistently conserv
Mostly conservative
Mixed
61
47
36
Among Democrats...
Consistently liberal
Mostly liberal
Mixed
20
25
72
62
25
54
27
40
34
NET
82
21
80
61
14
47
Members of own party
Very warm
Somewhat warm
Ideological consistency
Among Republicans...
Consistently conserv
39
Mostly conservative
42
Mixed
38
NET
33
75
61
23
Among Democrats...
Consistently liberal
56
Mostly liberal
56
Mixed
69
31
46
30
21
22
86
77
68
Note: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24), somewhat
cold (25-49), neutral (50), somewhat warm (51-75), very warm (76100). Ideological consistency based on a scale of 10 political values
questions; see Appendix A for details.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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Ideological consistency is based on a scale of 10 political values questions. See Appendix A for more information.
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Among Democrats, those with consistently liberal views are warmer to their party than other
Democrats: 86% express warm views of Democrats, compared with 77% of those with mostly
liberal views and 68% among those who are ideologically mixed in their views.
But among Republicans, the link between ideology and warmth toward their own party is
somewhat weaker. While Republicans with mostly conservative views are more likely to feel
warmly toward Republicans than those with mixed views (75% vs. 61%), all Republicans are about
as likely to feel very warmly towards their co-partisans: 39% of those with consistently
conservative views, 42% with mostly conservative views and 38% with ideologically mixed views
feel very warmly toward other Republicans.
Ideology can be measured using one’s political values or based on what people consider
themselves to be. Though these measures are correlated, they can differ (for example, not all of
those who have consistently liberal political values call themselves liberal). But, as with ideology
based on political values, self-identification is also associated with antipathy toward the opposing
party. Republicans who self-identify as more conservative are colder toward Democrats and
warmer toward Republicans than those who think of themselves as less conservative. A similar
pattern is seen among Democrats, with those who are more liberal expressing colder views of the
GOP’s membership than those who identify as less liberal.
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
As Republicans and Democrats have grown more negative in their views of the other party, so too
have their evaluations of presidents representing the other party become more critical. Partisan
divisions over presidential performance are wider now than at any point since the 1950s, and this
growing gap is largely the result of increasing disapproval from the opposition party.
With seven of the eight years of his term completed, Barack Obama’s average approval since taking
office stands at just 14% among Republicans, while his average approval among Democrats is 81%.
During George W. Bush’s time in office, his average overall approval rating among Democrats was
just 23%; on average 81% of Republicans approved of Bush’s performance. (These are averages for
the full Bush administration. During his final year in office, an average of just 8% of Democrats
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18
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
approved of his performance, along with 63% of Republicans).
Bush’s and Obama’s polarized job approval ratings stand in contrast to public ratings of previous
modern presidents. For example, on average 31% of Democrats approved of Ronald Reagan’s job
performance throughout his presidency, while he garnered similar ratings to Obama’s among
those in his own party (83% average approval). Just over a quarter of Republicans (27% on
average) approved of Bill Clinton’s job performance during his time in office. And going back to
Dwight Eisenhower’s administration, nearly half of Democrats (49%), along with 88% of
Republicans, said they approved of the job the GOP president was doing in office.
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
2. The roots of partisanship
Why do people choose to identify as a Republican or a Democrat? For Republicans, about as many
(68%) cite as a major reason the harm that Democratic policies inflict on the country as cite the
beneficial impact of GOP policies (64%).
The balance of views among Democrats is only slightly more positive: 68% say a major reason they
belong to their party is that Democratic policies are good for the country. However, concern over
Republican policies also looms large: 62% say a major reason for their party choice is that “the
Republican Party’s policies are harmful to the country.”
For members of both parties, other factors rank far behind the parties’ policies among reasons for
choosing a party. Roughly four-in-ten Democrats (41%) and Republicans (38%) say a major reason
for identifying with their party is that they “have a lot in common” with the people who belong to
the parties. Fewer people – 31% of Democrats and 26% of Republicans – say the lack of common
ground with members of the opposing party is a main reason why they are a Democrat or
Republican.
Majorities of Republicans, Democrats cite ‘harm’ from other party’s policies as
major reason for identifying with their party
% saying each is __ for identifying as a Republican or a Democrat
Among Republicans: Why do you identify as Republican?
Major reason
Minor reason
Among Democrats: Why do you identify as Democrat?
Not a reason
No answer
Dem policies
bad for country
Dem policies
good for country
68
Rep policies good
for country
Have lot in common
with other Reps
Not much in
common with Dems
Always been a Rep
19 11
64
38
36
26
23
27 8
30
23
26
41
52
68
Rep policies bad
for country
Have lot in common
with other Dems
Always been a Dem
Not much in
common with Reps
25 6
62
41
36
31
22
35
13
21
25
38
31
35
Notes: Question about reasons for identifying as a Republican asked only of Republicans (N=1,145); question about reasons for identifying as
a Democrat asked only of Democrats (N=1,548). Figures may not add to 100% because of rounding.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
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Just 31% of Democrats cite long-standing ties
with the party – “ever since I can remember
I’ve been a Democrat” – as a major reason for
identifying with the party. Even fewer
Republicans (23%) cite this as a major reason
they belong to the GOP.
For independents who lean to the Republican
and Democratic parties, the main motivation
for leaning to their party is the harm that the
opposing party’s policies cause the country.
More than half of Republican leaners (55%)
and 51% of Democratic leaners say harm from
the opposing party’s policies are a major
reason for leaning to their party. No other
factor comes close – just 30% of Republican
leaners and 34% of Democratic leaners cite the
positive effects from their preferred party’s
policies as a major reason.
When asked why they lean but do not identify
with their party, about half of Republican
leaners (52%) cite frustration with GOP
leaders as a major reason; another 40% say
they disagree with the party on some
important issues.
These factors are cited less frequently by
Democratic leaners: Just 28% say frustration
with the Democratic Party’s leaders is a major
reason they do not identify as Democrats, and
33% cite disagreements on key issues as a
major reason.
Why leaners lean – and why they don’t
identify with their parties
% saying each is a major reason for leaning toward
the Republican Party or Democratic Party
Lean Republican
Lean Democrat
55
Other party's policies
bad for country
51
30
Own party's policies
good for country
34
19
Have a lot in common
with own party
18
19
Not much in common
with other party
18
% saying each is a major reason for not identifying
as Republican or Democrat
Lean Republican
Lean Democrat
52
Frustrated with
party leadership
28
40
Disagree with party
on important issues
33
20
Uncomfortable with
(Rep/Dem) label
Don't care enough
about politics
23
14
17
Note: Questions asked of those who do not identify with a party;
Those who lean toward the Republican Party (N=796) and those
who lean toward the Democratic Party (N=759), respectively.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
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Far more Republicans and Democrats strongly reject the other party’s label than enthusiastically
embrace their own. A wide majority of Republicans (86%) say that the term “Republican”
describes them at least fairly well, but only 27% say the term describes them very well. However,
more than twice as many Republicans (67%) say the term “Democrat” describes them not at all
well.
A similar pattern is seen among Democrats. Fully 88% of Democrats say the term “Democrat”
describes them at least fairly well, but just a third (33%) say the party label describes them very
well. As with Republicans, far more Democrats (63%) say the opposing party’s label describes
them not at well than say their own party’s name describes them very well.
Large shares of Democrats and Republicans credit their own parties with representing their
interests at least fairly well. However, while 37% of Democrats say the Democratic Party
represents their interests very well, only about half as many Republicans (19%) say the same about
their party. Overwhelming shares in both parties say the opposing party does not represent their
Far more Republicans and Democrats strongly reject other party’s label than
enthusiastically embrace their own
Among Republicans
Each term describes you ___ well (%)
Not at all
Not too
Fairly
Very
Among Democrats
Each term describes you ___ well (%)
Not at all
Not too
Fairly
NET
Republican
13
Democrat
91
2 12
67
59
24 6
27
NET
NET
86
Republican 91
7
Democrat 10
Each party represents my interests ___ well (%)
Not at all
Not too
Somewhat
Very
Republican 13
Democrat
85
2 11
51
34 12 2
66
NET
63
28 6
19
7
55
33
88
Each party represents my interests ___ well (%)
Not at all
Not too
Somewhat
Very
NET
NET
NET
Very
19 86
Republican
13
Democrat
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
88
5
NET
52
36 11
4
11
57
37
94
22
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
interests well, with about half in each saying
the other party does not do at all well in this
regard (52% of Republicans, 51% of
Democrats).
In another sign of their dissatisfaction with the
Republican Party, fewer than half of
Republican leaners (45%) say the GOP does
well in representing their interests, while the
Democratic Party does not do a good job. But
nearly as many Republican leaners (39%) say
neither party does well in representing their
interests. Democratic leaners are more likely
to say their party does well in representing
their interests: 57% say this, compared with
just 26% who say neither party does a good
job.
Republican leaners more likely to say
neither party represents them well
% saying ___ represent(s) them very or somewhat well
Own party does,
Both
Neither
parties other party does not party
Lean Republican
14
Lean Democrat
14
45
57
39
26
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Most partisans say they have always thought of
themselves as belonging to their current party,
but about a third of Republicans (32%) say
that at one point they thought of themselves as
Democrats, while 22% of Democrats say they
previously considered themselves
Republicans.
A third of Republicans say they once
thought of themselves as Democrats
% who say there has been a time when they thought of
themselves as a member of the other party
Yes, in last 10 yrs
No
Among Republicans
All
However, relatively small numbers in each
party – 8% of Republicans and 7% of
Democrats – say they have thought of
themselves as members of the other party in
the past decade.
Yes, less recently
8
18-34
35-64
24
16
12
66
72
6
26
66
65+ 4
30
60
Among Democrats
Young people are more likely than older adults
to have thought of themselves as members of
the opposite party in the past 10 years. Among
Republicans, 16% of those under 35 say they
thought of themselves as Democrats in the
past decade, compared with 6% of those 35
and older. The pattern is similar among
Democrats: 15% of those younger than 35 vs.
4% of older Democrats were Republicans in
the past decade.
All
7
18-34
15
35-64 3
65+
15
7
76
8
17
19
77
78
68
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Among independents who lean to the
Republican and Democratic parties, most at
one time thought of themselves as members of
the party to which they currently lean.
About six-in-ten Republican leaners (61%) say
they once considered themselves Republicans,
including 41% who thought of themselves as
Republicans in the past decade. Similarly, 58%
of Democratic-leaning independents say they
once thought of themselves as Democrats
(40% in the past decade).
About a third of Republican-leaning
independents (35%) say in the past they
thought of themselves as Democrats, while a
comparable share of Democratic leaners say
they once viewed themselves as Republicans.
Most independents who lean to a party
once saw themselves as members of it
% of leaners who have ever thought of themselves as a …
Yes, in last 10 yrs
Yes, less recently
No
Among Republican leaners
Republican
Democrat
41
11
19
23
37
62
Among Democratic leaners
Republican
14
Democrat
16
40
70
18
41
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
3. Partisan environments, views of political conversations
and disagreements
For the most part, people have politically mixed friend groups, although both Republicans and
Democrats are more likely to say they have a lot of friends from their own party than from the
opposing party.
The partisan diversity of people’s friend networks is linked to how people feel about the members
of the other party, particularly among Republicans. Those who have at least some close friends in
the other party tend to feel less coldly toward people in that party than those with few friends of
the opposing party. And among Republicans, those who have close Democratic friends hold fewer
negative stereotypes of Democrats than those who do not.
During this campaign year, most people discuss politics and government at least a few times a
week. Yet for many, talking politics with those
who disagree with them can be an unsatisfying
Most partisans say they have at least
experience. About half describe such
a few close friends from the other party
conversations as “interesting and informative,”
How many of your close friends are ... (%)
but nearly as many call them “stressful and
A lot
Some
Just a few
None
frustrating.” And most say when they discuss
67
Among Republicans
politics with people they disagree with, they
find they have less in common politically than
Own party
40
52
52
they had thought.
Other party
7
46
Independent 2
Overall, friendships with people who share a
party are more common than friendships
across party lines. Yet most Americans have at
least some political diversity among their close
friends: Large majorities of both Democrats
and Republicans say they have at least a few
close friends from the other party.
Though few in either party say that they have
“a lot” of friends in the other party (just 7% of
Republicans and 6% of Democrats),
32
31
32
14
30
Among Democrats
Own party
48
Other party
6
31
Independent
7
30
40
38
33
8 3
24
27
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Republicans are more likely than Democrats to say they have at least a few close friends in the
opposing party. More than eight-in-ten Republicans (84%) say they have at least a few Democratic
friends; just 14% report that they have no close Democratic friends. Three-quarters of Democrats
(74%) say they have at least a few close Republican friends, while roughly a quarter (24%) say they
have no close Republican friends.
At the same time, four-in-ten Republicans (40%) and 48% of Democrats say that they have “a lot”
of close friends of their own party, and nearly all partisans have at least a few close friends who
share their party.
While many Republicans and Democrats have politically diverse networks of friends, the vast
majority of those who are married or living
with a partner say their spouse or partner
Most say spouses or partners are of the
belongs to the same political party. Fully 77%
same party
of Republicans who are married or living with
Is your spouse or partner a … (%)
a partner – and an identical percentage of
Other party
Own party
Other/
married Democrats – say their spouse belongs
DK
14
to the same party.
Republican
9
77
Mixed political relationships are rare: Just 9%
of Republicans say their spouse or partner is a
Democrat, while roughly the same share of
Democrats (8%) say their spouse is a
Republican.
Democrat
8
77
15
Notes: Asked of those who are married or living with a partner
(N=2,666). Figures may not add to 100% because of rounding.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
In a study of political polarization in 2014,
relatively few Republicans (22%) or Democrats (19%) said they would be unhappy if an immediate
family member married someone from the other party. On the other hand, just 5% in each party
said they would be happy about a mixed political marriage. Most (71% of Republicans, 76% of
Democrats) said it would not matter.
Most Americans have adopted the party that they grew up with, though Democrats (70%) are more
likely than Republicans (56%) to have grown up in a family that always or mostly supported
candidates of their current party.
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
This difference between the family
environments of Republicans and Democrats
Republicans somewhat less likely than
Democrats to ‘grow up’ with their party
is largely the result of many older Republicans
When growing up, close family always/mostly
reporting having grown up in families that
supported candidates of … (%)
supported Democrats: Among Republicans
Other party
Own party
None
ages 65 and older, roughly as many say their
families almost always or mostly supported
15
Republican
29
56
Democratic candidates (42%) as say they
always or mostly supported Republicans
12
Democrat
15
70
(37%). By comparison, 68% of Republicans
younger than 50 say they grew up in
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Republican households, identical to the share
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
of Democrats younger than 50 who say they
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
grew up in Democratic households (68%).
Similarly, roughly seven-in-ten older
Democrats say their families backed Democratic candidates when they were growing up.
Having friendships that cross party lines is associated with feelings about the opposing party,
especially among Republicans. Fully 83% of Republicans with “just a few” or no close Democratic
friends give Democrats cold thermometer ratings (0-49), and 62% give them very cold ratings (024). By contrast, Republicans with at least some Democratic friends are less likely to give
Democrats cold ratings: 60%
Republicans with few Democratic friends are far more
rate them at least somewhat
likely to have ‘very cold’ feelings toward Democrats
cold, with just 30% feeling
Among those with ____ close friends of the other party, % rating members of
very coldly toward them.
other party on a ‘feeling thermometer’ from 0 (coldest) to 100 (warmest) …
Differences among
Democrats are not as stark,
but nearly half (49%) of
Democrats with just a few or
no close Republican friends
rate Republicans very coldly,
compared with 31% of those
with at least some Republican
friends.
Very cold
Among Republicans
Somewhat cold
Among Democrats
NET
A lot/
some
Few/
none
30
30
62
21
NET
60
A lot/
some
83
Few/
none
31
57
27
49
16
Note: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0-24) and somewhat cold (25-49).
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
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65
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Similarly, Republicans with just a few or no Democratic friends are more likely than those who
have more Democratic friendships to say Democrats are closed-minded (17 percentage points
more likely), unintelligent (+17 points), immoral (+16 points) and dishonest (+14) when compared
with other Americans. On these same dimensions, they also are more likely to associate the
positive side of these traits with Republicans.
As with thermometer ratings of the opposing party, these differences are less pronounced among
Democrats. When it comes to most traits, Democrats who have few close Republican friends are
not significantly more likely to negatively stereotype Republicans than Democrats who have close
Republican friends.
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
In an era of partisan division, Republicans and
Democrats have generally similar views about
the value of discussions with people whom
they disagree with politically.
Half of Republicans say they generally find
such discussions to be “stressful and
frustrating,” while 48% find them “interesting
and informative.” Democrats also are divided
– 46% say conversations with those with
whom they disagree are stressful, while 52%
say they are interesting.
Nearly two-thirds of Republicans (65%) and
63% of Democrats say that, when they talk
politics with those with whom they disagree,
they find they have less in common politically
than they thought. Only about a third of
Republicans (33%) and Democrats (34%) say
they find they have more in common
politically with those they disagree with.
How people view discussions with those
whom they disagree with politically
Talking about politics with people you disagree with is
generally … (%)
Stressful and
Interesting and
frustrating
informative
Total
46
Republican
51
50
Democrat
48
46
52
When you talk about politics with people you disagree with,
usually find that you have ___ than you thought (%)
Less in common
Total
61
More in common
36
Republican
65
33
Democrat
63
34
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Among Democrats, a majority (56%) of those
with at least a college degree say they find political conversations with those they disagree with to
be stressful and frustrating; by contrast, most Democrats (58%) with lower levels of education find
such discussions to be interesting and informative. There are only modest educational differences
among Republicans in these views. However, Republicans who have a lot or some Democratic
friends (51%) are more likely than those who do not (35%) to find these types of conversations
interesting.
In both parties, majorities across educational and demographic groups say they find they have less
common ground politically when they talk politics with people they disagree with.
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
There is broad agreement, again across
partisan lines, that someone’s political beliefs
say a lot “about the kind of person they are.”
Fully 70% of Democrats say one’s political
views speak to their character, as do 63% of
Republicans. Just 28% of Democrats and 36%
of Republicans say a person’s political views
do not say much about the kind of person they
are.
Political views seen as a window to a
person’s character
How someone thinks about politics ____ about the kind of
person they are (%)
Doesn't say much
Says a lot
Total
32
Republican
36
Democrat
At the same time, identical majorities of both
Republicans and Democrats (59% each) say
that political differences do not preclude
people agreeing on other, nonpolitical topics.
About four-in-ten Republicans and Democrats
(38% each) say that if people hold different
views on politics they generally will not agree
on other topics.
65
63
28
70
When people hold different views about politics … (%)
It doesn't say a lot
about agreement
on other topics
Total
63
They generally
won't agree about
other topics
35
Republican
59
38
Democrat
59
38
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
Those who have friends of the other party are
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
much less likely than those who do not to say
that political beliefs convey a lot “about the
kind of person” someone is: Among Republicans, 58% of those with Democratic friends believe
this, while 82% of those with a few or no Democratic friends contend that how people think about
politics is indicative of their character. Among Democrats, there is a 9-percentage-point difference
in these views (68% vs. 77%).
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
4. Partisan stereotypes, views of Republicans and
Democrats as neighbors
Many Republicans and Democrats associate negative characteristics with members of the other
party – and positive traits with their own. But the specific criticisms Democrats and Republicans
have of each other vary. And on
several of these traits, a majority of
partisans say Republicans and
Democrats aren’t much different
from the public as a whole.
Of the five characteristics asked
about, Democrats are particularly
likely to say Republicans are
closed-minded: Fully 70% say
Republicans are a lot (35%) or
somewhat (35%) more closedminded compared with other
Americans; 23% say they are about
the same as other Americans on
this dimension; and just 5% view
Republicans as more open-minded
than other Americans.
Democrats are less likely to opt for
other negative descriptors of
Republicans: About four-in-ten
(42%) say GOP members are more
dishonest than other Americans,
while about half say they are about
the same and 5% say they are more
honest. Though half or more of
Democrats do not think of
Republicans as different from
other Americans when it comes to
morality, intelligence or work
ethic, roughly a third say they are
more immoral (35%) and more
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
unintelligent (33%); just 18% say Republicans are lazier than other Americans (9% say they are
more hardworking).
Though no one negative trait stands out to the same degree among Republicans in their
evaluations of Democrats, Republicans are somewhat more likely to lodge criticism in several
areas: Roughly half (52%) think of Democrats as more closed-minded than other Americans, and
about as many say Democrats are more immoral (47%), more lazy (46%) and more dishonest
(45%).
Partisans also have positive associations with members of their own party, and these largely
mirror the negative stereotypes of the other party. Almost six-in-ten Republicans (59%) say
Republicans are more hard-working than other Americans; just 37% of Democrats say the same
about fellow Democrats. And while about half of Republicans (51%) see members of their party as
more moral than other Americans, a smaller share of Democrats (38%) say this about their copartisans.
Nearly as many Democrats say Democrats are more open-minded than Americans as a whole
(67%) as say Republicans are more closed-minded (70%). Only about a third of Republicans (32%)
think other Republicans are more open-minded. Nearly two-in-ten Republicans (18%) say
Republicans are more closed-minded than other Americans, the largest share to ascribe a negative
trait to those in their own party.
Republicans and Democrats are equally likely to say those in the other party are unintelligent
(32% vs. 33%, respectively) and to view members of their own party as intelligent (43% vs. 40%).
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Participation in politics can
take a variety of different
forms. More than half of
Republicans (55%) and
roughly four-in-ten
Democrats (41%) report
following what is going in
government and public
affairs most of the time.
However, only 5% of
Republicans and 8% of
Democrats say they have
worked or volunteered for a
political campaign over the
past year.
Republicans, Democrats equally likely to have
contributed money to, volunteered for a campaign
% who ...
Republican
41
Always vote
41
55
47
29
Talk about politics
nearly every day
20
In the past year have ...
28
24
Expressed campaign
support on social media
19
17
Contaced elected official
Contributing money to
candidates or groups working
to elect candidates is
somewhat more common
(15% of Republicans and 17%
of Democrats have done this
in the last year), while
roughly a quarter of
Republicans (28%) and
Democrats (24%) say they
have publicly expressed
support for a political
campaign on Facebook,
Twitter or other social media.
Democrat
Follow politics most
of the time
Displayed campaign
poster, button, etc.
16
15
Contributed money to a
candidate or group
15
17
9
11
Attended a political rally,
speech, campaign event
Active in a group
influencing public policy
Worked or volunteered for
a campaign
7
10
5
8
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Democrats and Republicans participate at roughly equal rates across a range of different activities,
and those who are more politically engaged are more likely to associate negative traits with the
other side and more likely to associate positive traits with their own.
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
About one-in-four partisans hold none of these negative stereotypes of those on the other side
(25% of Republicans and 22% of Democrats). Across most measures of political participation,
these individuals with no
negative partisan stereotypes
Many forms of political engagement and activity tied
were less likely to participate
to negative stereotypes of other party’s members
in politics.
Conversely, those who
associate three or more
negative traits with people in
the opposing party (as 37% of
Democrats and 44% of
Republicans do) participate in
politics at the highest rates.
For instance, while just 5% of
Republicans who do not
associate any negative traits
with Democrats have
contributed money to a
candidate or group working to
elect a candidate in the past
year, that rises to 14% among
those who hold one or two
negative stereotypes of the
opposing party, and to 22%
among those who ascribe three
or more of the five negative
traits to Democrats.
Among those who associate __ negative traits
with the other party
Republicans
Democrats
Hi-Lo
Hi-Lo
0 1-2 3+ diff
0 1-2 3+ diff
% who ...
%
%
%
%
%
%
Follow politics most of time 39
53
65
+26
30
42
50 +20
Always vote 38
45
54
+16
39
38
44
Talk about politics nearly
every day 16
31
36
+20
11
19
28 +17
% who have in the past year ...
Publicly expressed support for
campaign on social media 13
32
35
+22
12
28
29 +17
Contributed money to a
candidate or group 5
14
22
+17
10
19
21 +11
Contacted an elected official 14
17
23
+9
6
18
22 +16
Displayed poster, bumpersticker, clothing or button 12
13
20
+8
10
18
16
Attended a political rally,
speech or campaign event 4
12
10
+6
5
11
16 +11
Active in a group influencing
public policy 4
5
10
+6
6
9
14
+8
Worked/volunteered for
a campaign 5
3
7
+2
6
7
9
+3
+5
+6
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Similar patterns are evident for other types of political activity, such as contacting elected officials
and publicly expressing support for candidates, and are seen among both Democrats and
Republicans.
www.pewresearch.org
35
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
For many Republicans and Democrats alike,
the extent to which they might get along with a
new neighbor might depend on who that
neighbor is – and their partisan affiliation.
Majorities in both parties say the party
affiliation of a new neighbor wouldn’t make it
any easier or harder to get along with them,
But roughly four-in-ten Republicans (43%)
and Democrats (42%) say it would be a lot or
somewhat easier if the newcomer “were a
Republican” or “were a Democrat,”
respectively. Comparable majorities of each
side (57% of Republicans, 55% of Democrats)
think it would be neither easier nor harder to
get along with a newcomer who identified with
their own party. Very few think it would be
harder to get along with a member of their
own party who moved to the community.
Four-in-ten say it’s easier to get along
with a neighbor of their own party
If a new person moved to your community, would it
make it easier or harder for you to get along with them if
they were a (Republican/Democrat)?
Easier
% who say ____ to get along
with neighbor of own party
Republican
43
Democrat
Neither
Harder
57
42
*
55
2
% who say ____ to get along with
neighbor of other party
Republican 1
Democrat
7
70
27
61
31
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
But just as some find it easier to get along with those who share their partisan affiliation, some say
it would be more difficult to get along with a member of the other party: 31% of Democrats say it
would be harder to get along with a new person in the community if they were a Republican, while
nearly as many Republicans (27%) say it would be tougher to get along with a new Democratic
neighbor.
About six-in-ten Democrats (61%) say having a new neighbor who is a member of the GOP would
make it neither easier nor harder to get along, and 7% say it would be easier. Seven-in-ten
Republicans (70%) would react neutrally toward a new Democratic neighbor, and just 1% say it
would be easier to get along with them.
www.pewresearch.org
36
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Highly engaged partisans (those who vote
regularly, and either volunteer or contribute to
campaigns) are far more likely than those who
are less engaged to say it would be easier to get
along with a co-partisan – and harder to get
along with someone from the other party.
In thinking about a new person in the
community, identical majorities of both
Republicans and Democrats who are highly
engaged (61%) would find it a lot or somewhat
easier to get along if the person were a
member of their own party.
Fewer of those who are less politically engaged
feel the same way (40% of Republicans and
38% of Democrats), with about six-in-ten
saying it would be neither easier nor harder.
Similarly, those with higher levels of political
engagement are more likely to express
skepticism about being able to get along with
new neighbors identifying with the other
party: 44% of highly engaged Democrats and
nearly as many highly engaged Republicans
(38%) say it would be harder to get along with
a new person in the community if they were a
member of the other party. By comparison,
only about a quarter of less engaged
Democrats (29%) and Republicans (25%)
would find it harder to get along with a
neighbor of the opposing party.
Neighbors’ party affiliation would matter
more to politically engaged partisans
If a new person moved to your community, would it
make it ___ for you to get along with them ... (%)
Easier
Neither
Harder
Political engagement
Among Republicans
... if they were a Republican
High
61
Med/Low
39
40
60
Among Democrats
... if they were a Democrat
High
61
Med/Low
36
38
59
2
Political engagement
Among Republicans
... if they were a Democrat
High
54
Med/Low 2
38
73
25
Among Democrats
... if they were a Republican
High
Med/Low
10
6
44
44
65
29
Notes: Don’t know/No answer not shown. Engagement scale based
on voting frequency, campaign volunteerism and/or contributions.
See Appendix A for details.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
37
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Republicans and Democrats show some distinctive preferences toward other potential
characteristics of new neighbors as well, from gun ownership to belief in God – though in nearly
all cases, majorities say these traits would not have an effect on their ability to get along with a new
neighbor.
Republicans are about twice as likely as Democrats to say it would be easier to get along with a
new person in the community if they had served in the military (42% vs. 18%) or regularly
attended church (41% vs. 23%). Still, most Democrats say these traits would not have much impact
on their ability to get along.
Modest partisan differences over ease of getting along with neighbors with military
service, college degrees, church attendance; bigger divide over gun owners
If a new person moved to your community, would it make it easier or harder for you to get along with them
if they … (%)
Among Republicans
Easier
Neither
Were a conservative
43
Served in the military
42
Owned guns
46
30
Liked sports
31
76
60
46
66
Were gay or lesbian 3
6
Were a Democrat 1
R+41
7
61
31
R+36
18
75
7
6
51
65
17
71
62
29
80
15
64
2
11
R+18
12
R+4
11
R+3
6
R+2
11
D+4
65
9
38
D+5
21
59
R+24
R+19
41
23
5
43
Diff
in %
easier
30
27
8
Harder
60
9
64
32
Were a liberal 3
3
Neither
9
4
86
Did not believe in God 10
Had a college degree
6
55
Never attended college 5
Volunteered in the community
5
68
21
Had children
3
53
41
Liked country music
Easier
57
26
Regularly attended church
Liked hip-hop
Harder
50
Were a Republican
Among Democrats
2
D+6
75
21
12
75
12
D+9
69
24
15
72
12
D+9
20
78
57
31
40
70
27
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
37
42
65
59
55
4
D+11
2
D+34
2
D+41
38
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
About a quarter of Republicans (26%) say it would be easier to get along with a new neighbor if
they owned guns, while just 6% say it would be harder; 68% say it would not make a difference. By
contrast, 41% of Democrats think it would be harder to get along with a new neighbor if they
owned guns and just 7% say this would make it easier to get along (51% say neither).
Among Republicans, about as many say it would be harder to get along with a new neighbor who
did not believe in God (43%) as say it would be neither easier nor harder (46%). Republicans are
twice as likely as Democrats to find it hard to get along with someone who did not believe in God
(43% vs. 21%), while Democrats are nearly as likely to say it would be easier to get along with a
non-believer as to say it would be harder (15% vs. 21%).
About three-in-ten Democrats (31%) and somewhat fewer Republicans (20%) say having a college
degree is something that would make it easier to get along with a neighbor, though clear majorities
in both parties say this would not impact their ability to get along.
Neighbors who like sports, have children or volunteer in the community are viewed as easier to get
along with by more than a quarter of Republicans and Democrats alike. In both parties, relatively
few say these characteristics would make it harder to get along with a neighbor, while most say
they would not matter much.
www.pewresearch.org
39
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
5. Views of parties’ positions on issues, ideologies
Republicans and Democrats see little common ground between the two parties when it comes to
issues, ideas and ideology. Majorities of partisans say the policy positions of the Republican and
Democratic parties are very different, and neither Republicans nor Democrats say the other party
has many good ideas.
In general terms, both Republicans and Democrats agree with their own party’s policies. In-party
agreement extends to specific issues, such as policies to deal with the economy, health care and
immigration.
However, there are some issue areas – climate change for Republicans and policies to deal with
ISIS for Democrats – where somewhat smaller majorities of partisans say they agree with their
own party’s approach. Even then, few partisans express agreement with the other party on these
issues.
Overall, about seven-in-ten Republicans (71%) and Democrats (70%) say they generally agree with
their party’s positions almost always or more
than half the time. Even larger majorities –
Partisans broadly agree with own
84% of Republicans and 82% of Democrats –
party’s policies across issue areas
disagree with the other party’s positions at
% of Republicans and Democrats who agree with their
own party on each issue …
least most of the time.
Republican
Most Republicans and Democrats also agree
with their own party’s policies on a range of
specific issues, including the economy,
immigration, health care and policies to deal
with the Islamic militant group in Iraq and
Syria.
However, the shares agreeing with their own
party vary by issue, and the patterns of
agreement are different within the two parties.
Democrat
Diff
ISIS
79
67
R+12
Gun policy
80
71
R+9
Illegal immigration
82
77
R+5
Economy
80
81
D+1
Budget deficit
72
Health care
Rich-poor gap
Abortion
Climate change
79
73
65
59
73
D+1
84
D+5
80
D+7
73
80
D+8
D+21
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
40
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Republicans are less likely to say they agree
with their own party’s positions on climate
change and abortion than they are to say this
about other major issues. Overall, 65%
strongly or somewhat agree with the
Republican Party’s policies on abortion and
59% say they agree with the party’s approach
to dealing with climate change. By contrast,
larger majorities of Republicans agree with
their party’s positions on illegal immigration
(82%), the economy (80%) and gun policy
(80%).
Republicans strongly agree with party’s
policies on guns and illegal immigration
Among Republicans, % who agree with ___ party on
each issue …
Agree
Dem
Strongly
agree
Rep
Illegal immigration
54
28
12
Gun policy
57
23
12
Economy
44
36
14
Health care
42
37
12
ISIS
Among Democrats, the percentage that agrees
with their party’s policies to deal with ISIS
(67%) is smaller than the share agreeing with
the Democratic Party’s stance on issues such
as health care (84%), the economy (81%) and
climate change (80%).
There is little evidence that the other party’s
positions hold appeal for Republicans or
Democrats, even on the issues for which
agreement with one’s own party is relatively low.
Somewhat Don't
agree agree with
Rep
either
Rich-poor gap
54
32
25
16
41
19
Budget deficit
39
32
22
Abortion
39
27
22
Climate change
26
33
29
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
For example, while a modest 59% of Republicans agree with their own party’s positions on climate
change, just 9% say they agree with the Democratic Party’s policies on the issue; a much larger
share (29%) say they don’t agree with either party on the issue. Similarly, 23% of Democrats say
they do not agree with either party’s policies to deal with ISIS compared with just 7% who agree
with the GOP’s policies (67% of Democrats agree with their own party on the issue).
Among Republicans, strong agreement with their own party is most concentrated on the issues of
gun policy, illegal immigration and policies to deal with ISIS.
More than half of Republicans strongly agree with the Republican Party’s policies on guns (57%),
illegal immigration (54%) and ISIS (54%). Strong agreement is lower on other issues – such as the
economy (44%) and health care (42%) – yet overall levels of agreement on these issues are
comparable to those on gun policy, immigration and ISIS.
www.pewresearch.org
41
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Democrats express the highest levels of
intense agreement with their own party on
different issues than Republicans.
Overall, 48% of Democrats say they strongly
agree with the Democratic Party’s positions on
health care and abortion, and 47% say they
strongly agree with their party on climate
change.
Just 29% of Democrats say they strongly agree
with their party’s policies to deal with ISIS,
while 37% somewhat agree.
Among Democrats, higher levels of
strong agreement with party on health
care, abortion, climate change
Among Democrats, % who agree with ___ party on each
issue …
Agree
Rep
Health care
Strongly
agree
Dem
Somewhat Don't
agree agree with
Dem
either
48
36
10
Economy
38
43
14
Rich-poor gap
43
36
16
Climate change
47
33
16
Illegal immigration
42
Budget deficit
38
Abortion
48
Gun policy
45
ISIS
29
35
35
26
26
37
13
21
19
19
23
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
42
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
While Republicans and Democrats express different levels of
agreement with their own party on specific issues, the overall
number of issues on which they express agreement with their
own party is similar.
About seven-in-ten Republicans (71%) and Democrats (72%)
agree with their own party on at least five of the seven issues
asked of all survey respondents (excluding the budget deficit
and the gap between the rich and poor); about four-in-ten
express agreement with their party on all seven issues (38% and
42%, respectively). Relatively few Republicans (18%) or
Democrats (18%) agree with their party on three or four of the
issues, and just 11% of both parties agree on fewer than three
issues.
Most partisans don’t
agree with their party on
at least one issue
Of seven issues, % who agree with
their own party on ...
All
5-6
3-4
Less than 3
11
11
18
18
33
29
38
42
Republican
Democrat
Note: Analysis based on 7 of 9 issues
asked of all respondents; see Appendix A
for details.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and
April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
43
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
The feelings Republicans and Democrats express about members of the other party are closely tied
to their levels of issue agreement with their party. Those who agree with their party on a greater
number of issues are more
likely than those who agree
Colder views of the other party among those who
with their party on fewer
agree with own party on greater number of issues
issues to give members of
Cold rating
Warm rating
their own party warm
of other party members
of own party members
ratings; they are also more
88
Democrat
Republican
likely to give members of the
79
76
72
other party cold ratings on a
65
78
thermometer scale from 0 to
62
69
69
100.
66
47
Democrat
Nearly seven-in-ten
Democrats (69%) and eightin-ten Republicans (79%)
who agree with their own
party on all issues say they
have a cold view of members
of the other party. By
contrast, far fewer Democrats
(32%) and Republicans
(34%) who agree with their
party on fewer than three
issues express cold feelings
toward members of the other
party.
34
Republican
51
32
<3
61
30
3-4
5-6
All
<3
3-4
5-6
All
# of issues (of seven) partisans are in agreement with own party
Notes: Analysis based on 7 of 9 issues asked of all respondents; see Appendix A for details.
Ratings of the parties are based on a “feeling thermometer” from 0 (coldest) to 100
(warmest); cold (0 to 49) and warm (51-100).
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Similarly, 78% of Republicans who agree with their party on all seven issues express warm ratings
toward other Republicans, compared with just 30% of Republicans who agree with their party on
fewer than three issues. The pattern is similar among Democrats: 88% of those who express
across-the-board issue agreement with the Democratic Party have warm feelings toward other
Democrats. Among Democrats who agree with their own party on only a few issues, just 47% have
a warm view of Democrats.
www.pewresearch.org
44
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Republicans and Democrats who are highly engaged with politics are more likely to agree with
their own party’s positions on issues than those who are less engaged.
Among Republicans who are
highly engaged with politics
(regular voters who volunteer
or contribute to political
causes), 88% say they agree
with the Republican Party’s
positions on at least five of
seven major issues.
Republicans who have
medium or low levels of
political engagement are less
likely to express agreement
with their own party on these
issues (72% and 60%,
respectively).
Highly engaged more likely to agree with their party’s
positions than those who are less engaged
Of seven issues, % who agree with their own party on ...
Among Republicans
All
3
9
Among Democrats
5-6
9
18
19
3-4
Less than 3
4
5
27
10
18
22
22
38
14
28
32
32
31
63
50
44
40
29
31
The same relationship
between political engagement
High
Med
Low
High
Med
Low
and in-party issue agreement
Level
of
political
engagement
is seen among Democrats.
Notes: Analysis based on 7 of 9 issues asked of all respondents.
Nine-in-ten highly engaged
Engagement scale based on voting frequency, campaign volunteerism and/or contributions.
Democrats agree with their
See Appendix A for details.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
own party on most of the
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
seven issues, compared with
72% of Democrats with
medium levels of political engagement and 63% of Democrats with low levels of political
engagement.
More politically engaged Republicans and Democrats also are more likely than the less engaged to
see large differences between the policies of the two parties and to say the other party has almost
no good ideas.
www.pewresearch.org
45
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
The public sees a clear distinction between the policy positions of the Republican and Democratic
parties: About half (51%) say the positions of
the two parties are very different, while
Republicans and Democrats say the two
another 34% say they are somewhat different.
parties’ policies are ‘very different’
Just 14% say they are either not too or not at
How different are the policy positions of the Republican
and Democratic parties … (%)
all different.
Very
Partisans are especially likely to see the two
parties as holding different views: 60% of
Republicans and 62% of Democrats say the
parties take very different policy positions.
By contrast, those who say they lean toward a
party, but do not identify with it, see more
modest differences between the two parties.
About four-in-ten Republican leaners (41%)
and Democratic leaners (40%) say the policy
positions of the Republican and Democratic
parties are very different.
Republicans and Democrats also do not see
many good ideas coming out of the other
party. Among Democrats, just 21% say the
Republican Party has either a lot or some good
ideas; 43% say it has a few and 34% say it has
almost no good ideas. Views of the Democratic
Party’s ideas among Republicans are similarly
skeptical: Only 16% say the Democratic Party
has a lot or some good ideas, while 40% say it
has a few and 43% say it has almost none.
Total
Somewhat
Not too/Not at all
51
34
14
Republican
60
31
8
Democrat
62
27
9
Among independents who ...
Lean Rep
41
Lean Dem
36
40
22
45
15
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Does the other party have good ideas?
How many good ideas does the other party have?
A lot/Some
Republican
Democrat
16
21
A few
40
Almost none
43
43
34
Note: Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
46
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Most partisans say that, when it comes to how Democrats and Republicans should address the
most important issues facing the county, their party should get more out of the deal.
On a scale of 0 to 10, where 10 means their party gets everything it wants and 0 means the other
party gets everything it wants, about six-in-ten of those in both parties (58% of Republicans, 62%
of Democrats) think their side should get more on the key issues facing the nation. Roughly threein-ten Republicans (29%) and Democrats (27%) say both parties should get about half of what they
want (a 5 on the scale).
Partisans with colder feelings toward the other party are more likely to say that their own side
should get more. Among Republicans, 44% of those who feel neutral or warm toward Democrats
Most say their party should get more than the other party when addressing the
country’s important issues
On a scale from 0 to 10, where 10 means [own party] gets everything they want and [other party] gets nothing,
and 0 means [other party] gets everything and [own party] gets nothing, where should they should end up? (%)
NET
Own party
gets > half
(6-10)
Own party
gets all
(10)
Republican
Both parties
get the same
(5)
29
12
27
11
58
Democrat
62
NET
Other party
gets > half
(0-4)
Among Republicans who rate Democrats ...
Neutral/
Warm
Somewhat
cold
44
43
62
12
24
69
Very cold
13
20
11
Among Democrats who rate Republicans ...
Neutral/
Warm
Somewhat
cold
Very cold
48
41
69
71
26
15
Note: Ratings of the parties are based on a “feeling thermometer” from 0 (coldest) to 100 (warmest); very cold (0 to 24),
somewhat cold (25-49), neutral/warm (50-100).
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
12
5
14
47
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
say their own party should get more than half of what it wants on key issues facing the country.
That share rises to 62% of Republicans who give Democrats somewhat cold ratings, and 69% of
those who rate Democrats very coldly.
The same pattern is evident among Democrats. Among those who give Republicans a very cold
rating, 71% say Democrats should get more in partisan dealings; 69% of those who rate
Republicans coldly say the same. By comparison, a smaller share (48%) of those who rate
Republicans neutrally or warmly say their own party should get most of what it wants.
www.pewresearch.org
48
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Republicans and Democrats
tend to view the opposing
party as highly ideological,
while viewing their own party
as less ideological.
On an 11-point scale where 10
is very liberal and 0 is very
conservative, a 34% plurality
of Democrats use the most
conservative option to
describe the ideology of the
Republican Party. Fully 58%
of Democrats select one of
the three most conservative
points to describe the
Republican Party’s ideology.3
Other party seen as more ideological than one’s own
% who place the Republican Party’s ideology on an 11-point scale …
Among Republicans
Among Democrats
34
23
19
16
13
2 1 1
Very
liberal
6
4 3
Very
conservative
12 11
12
11
6
2 3
Very
liberal
4
2
4
7
Very
conservative
% who place the Democratic Party’s ideology on an 11-point scale …
Among Republicans
Among Democrats
45
While most Republicans
(71%) describe their party as
conservative (0-4 on the
scale), just 11% of
Republicans select the most
20
18
conservative option. About a
15
13
12
11 12
11
third of Republicans rate
6 5
their party one of the three
5
4
3 5 3
2 2 2 1 3
1
most conservative points
Very
Very
Very
Very
(36%), while about as many
liberal
conservative liberal
conservative
(35%) give their party a
Note: Ideology ratings on an 11-point scale where 0 is very conservative, 5 is the midpoint
conservative rating that is
and 10 is very liberal. Don’t know/No answer not shown.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
closer to the midpoint (a 3 or
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
4). Just 16% select the
midpoint of the scale (5) and
only about one-in-ten (11%) place themselves on the liberal side of the scale.
3
Half of respondents were asked the scale in reverse (10 is very conservative, 0 is very liberal). See topline for more detail.
www.pewresearch.org
49
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
A similar pattern is seen in views of the Democratic Party’s ideology. Fully 45% of Republicans
select the most liberal option to describe the Democratic Party, and nearly seven-in-ten
Republicans (68%) use one of the three most liberal points on the scale (8, 9 or 10) to describe the
party.
Democrats have a more evenly distributed view of their party’s ideology. Just 13% give it the most
liberal score on the scale and only a third (33%) describe the party’s ideology with one of the three
most liberal points on the scale. About three-in-ten Democrats (31%) give their party a liberal
rating that is closer to the midpoint (a 6 or 7), and 18% place the ideology of their party in the
middle of the scale (5); 17% place themselves on the conservative side of the scale.
www.pewresearch.org
50
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
www.pewresearch.org
51
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
6. How do the political parties make you feel?
Republicans and Democrats have strong negative reactions to the opposing party. Feelings of
frustration are most common
– 58% of Democrats and 57%
Beyond frustration: Many Democrats and Republicans
of Republicans feel frustrated
say other party makes them afraid, angry
by the other party. But large
How does the Republican/Democratic Party make you feel? (%)
shares also react with fear
Other party makes you feel …
Own party makes you feel …
and anger toward the other
Frustrated
Hopeful
party.
A majority of Democrats
(55%) say the GOP makes
them feel afraid, while 49% of
Republicans say the same
about the Democratic Party.
And nearly half of Democrats
(47%) and Republicans (46%)
say the other party makes
them feel angry.
Republican
Democrat
Republican
Democrat
57
58
Afraid
Republican
Republican
55
Democrat
46
47
Any negative
Republican
Democrat
23
Democrat
26
Proud
Republican
16
26
Angry
Republican
73
Enthusiastic
49
Democrat
64
Democrat
87
87
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Overwhelming majorities in
both parties (87% in each) have at least one of these negative feelings about the other party –
frustration, fear or anger.
When thinking about their own parties, substantial majorities of both Democrats (73%) and
Republicans (64%) say their parties make them feel hopeful. But far fewer say their own parties
stir feelings of enthusiasm or pride.
Only about a quarter of Democrats (26%) and a similar share of Republicans (23%) say their party
makes them feel enthusiastic. Roughly a quarter of Democrats (26%) also say their party makes
them feel proud, while fewer Republicans (16%) say the same about their party.
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Republicans are more likely to say
that their party engenders
frustration than say it makes them
feel enthusiastic or proud. A third
of Republicans (33%) say the GOP
makes them feel frustrated. By
comparison, just 13% of
Democrats express frustration
with their party.
A third of Republicans are frustrated with the GOP
How does the Republican/Democratic Party make you feel? (%)
Own party makes you feel …
Frustrated
Republican
33
Democrat
Democrat
Afraid
Republican
Democrat
Very few partisans feel afraid or
angry toward their own party. And
only tiny shares in each party say
the other party makes them feel
hopeful, enthusiastic or proud.
13
Other party makes you feel …
Hopeful
Republican
5
7
Republican
Democrat
2
3
Enthusiastic
1
1
Angry
Republican
Democrat
7
3
Proud
Republican
*
Democrat
1
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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Those who are more politically active are significantly more likely to be express negative emotions
about the other party – particularly to say that it makes them feel afraid or angry.
Among highly politically engaged Republicans – those who say they vote regularly and have
volunteered for or donated to a political campaign in the past year – 62% say that the Democratic
Party makes them feel afraid. Among those moderately engaged (those who vote regularly, but do
not participate in or donate to campaigns) 51% are afraid. And among the least engaged
Republicans (irregular voters or those not registered to vote), just 37% say they are afraid of the
Democratic Party.
The pattern is similar among Democrats. Fully 70% of highly engaged Democrats say they are
afraid of the Republican Party, compared with 46% of Democrats who do not vote regularly or are
not registered.
Similarly, political engagement is associated with anger at the other party: 58% of both Democrats
and Republicans who are highly politically engaged are angered by the other party; fewer than half
of those who are less engaged say the same.
On the other hand, frustration with the other party is not associated with political engagement:
About six-in-ten of those in both parties, regardless of how actively they participate in politics, say
they feel frustrated with the other party.
Anger and fear of other party linked to higher levels of political engagement
Among Republicans whose political engagement is …
High
Medium
Low
% who say Democratic Party makes them feel ...
Afraid
37
Angry
37
Frustrated
51
47
62
Among Democrats whose political engagement is …
High
Medium
Low
High-Low
diff
% who say Republican Party makes them feel ...
+25
Afraid
46
58
58
54
61
+21
Angry
-3
Frustrated
45
44
56
70
58
60
58
58
Note: Engagement scale based on voting frequency, campaign volunteerism and/or contributions. See Appendix A for details.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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High-Low
diff
+24
+14
+2
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Among Democrats, those with higher levels of political engagement are more likely than those who
are less engaged to express positive emotions about their party. But among Republicans the
differences in positive feelings are far more modest. And Republicans who are more engaged are
less enthusiastic about the party – and more frustrated – than are those who are less active.
Highly engaged Democrats say their party makes them feel hopeful (83%) at higher rates than less
engaged Democrats. And while feelings of enthusiasm and pride are not widely felt emotions,
those who are the most politically active are more likely to express both emotions about the
Democratic Party. Highly engaged Democrats are no more likely than less engaged Democrats to
express frustration with their own party (14% vs. 13%).
Among Republicans, the GOP inspires feelings of hope among similar shares of the highly engaged
as well as the least engaged (70% vs. 65%). But about a third of the least engaged Republicans
Highly politically engaged Democrats are more hopeful about their party than less
engaged; among GOP, politically engaged report more frustration with the party
Among Republicans whose political engagement is …
High
Medium
Low
% who say Republican Party makes them feel ...
70
62
65
Hopeful
19
19
Enthusiastic
Proud
High
Medium
Low
High-Low
% who say Democratic Party makes them feel ...
diff
+5
-15
34
12
16
21
-9
1
Afraid 7
9
-8
8
Angry 8
3
+5
Frustrated
25
34
45
Among Democrats whose political engagement is …
+20
Hopeful
73
68
Enthusiastic
21
Proud
25
23
33
14
13
13
Note: Engagement scale based on voting frequency, campaign volunteerism and/or contributions. See Appendix A for details.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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+15
+9
27
4
Angry 2
2
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
83
36
3
Afraid 2
3
Frustrated
High-Low
diff
+10
0
+2
+1
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(34%) feel enthusiastic about the GOP, compared with 19% of those who are more politically
engaged. Relatively few Republicans overall (16%) feel proud of the GOP, and there is no
significant difference by levels of political engagement.
Highly engaged Republicans are, however, more likely than those who are less engaged to express
frustration with the GOP: Fully 45% of highly engaged Republicans say this, compared with a
quarter (25%) of the least engaged Republicans.
Republican registered voters who supported
Donald Trump in the GOP primary are more
likely than those who supported other
candidates to say that the Democratic Party
makes them feel angry (58% vs. 44%). But
Republican voters who supported Trump in
the primaries are no more likely than those
who did not back Trump to say that they feel
frustrated with or afraid of the Democratic
Party.
On the Democratic side, voters who supported
Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in the
primaries are about as likely to say that the
Republican Party makes them feel frustrated
(59% and 64%, respectively). But Sanders
backers are more likely than those who
preferred Clinton to say that they the
Republican Party makes them feel afraid (68%
vs. 55%), and to say that the GOP makes them
feel angry (57% vs. 46%).
Republican voters who backed Trump in the
primaries are more hopeful, enthusiastic and
proud of the Republican Party than those who
did not support him in the primaries. For
Majorities of Trump, Sanders primary
supporters angry with the other party
Among Republicans who supported ___ in the primary
Trump
Other candidate
Diff
% who say Dem Party makes them ...
58
Angry
+14
44
58
Frustrated
+2
56
52
Afraid
-1
53
Among Democrats who supported ___ in the primary
Clinton
Sanders
% who say Rep Party makes them ...
59
Frustrated
Angry
Afraid
Diff
64
46
-5
-11
57
55
68
-13
Note: Based on registered voters. Primary preference from April 5May 2, 2016 survey.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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example, 75% of those who supported Trump say the party makes them feel hopeful, compared
with 59% of Republicans who supported another candidate.
On the other hand, Democratic supporters of Clinton and Sanders are about equally hopeful or
enthusiastic about the Democratic Party, while those who backed Clinton are more likely than
Sanders supporters to say that the party makes them proud (32% vs. 21%).
Like partisans, independents
who lean to the Republican or
Democratic Party feel
negatively toward the
opposition. Eight-in-ten
Republican-leaning
independents (80%) have at
least one negative reaction to
the Democratic Party
(frustration, anger or fear) as
do 87% of those who identify as
Republicans. Among
Democratic leaners, 75%
express at least one of these
emotions about the GOP,
compared with 87% of
Democrats.
Democratic leaners are far
more likely than Democrats to
be frustrated with the
Democratic Party. More than a
third of Democratic-leaning
independents (36%) say they
are frustrated with the
Democratic Party, compared
with just 13% of those who
affiliate with the party. Among
Republicans and Republican
Democratic-leaning independents more likely than
Democrats to be frustrated with their party
How does the Republican/Democratic Party make you feel? (%)
Lean
Rep
Dem
Lean
Dem
%
%
2
8
-6
+9
3
10
-7
51
+6
13
36
-23
80
+7
16
39
-23
7
10
-3
55
43
+12
Angry
7
18
-11
47
39
+8
Frustrated
33
40
-7
58
54
+4
Any negatives
38
49
-11
87
75
+12
Hopeful
5
6
-1
73
52
+21
Enthusiastic
1
*
1
26
12
+14
Proud
*
*
0
26
6
+20
Hopeful
64
38
+26
3
6
-3
Enthusiastic
23
6
+17
1
2
-1
Proud
16
3
+13
1
*
1
Negative emotions
Democratic Party makes
you feel …
Rep
Diff
%
%
Afraid
49
40
+9
Angry
46
37
Frustrated
57
Any negatives
87
Afraid
Diff
Republican Party makes
you feel …
Positive emotions
Democratic Party makes
you feel …
Republican Party makes
you feel …
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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leaners, there are smaller differences in the shares saying they are frustrated with the Republican
Party (33% of partisans vs. 40% of leaners).
Both Democrats and Republicans feel more positively toward their parties than do leaners. For
instance, 64% of Republicans say their party makes them feel hopeful, compared with just 38% of
Republican leaners. And while 73% of Democrats feel hopeful about the Democratic Party, about
half (52%) of Democratic leaners say the same.
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7. Partisan views of 2016 candidates, Barack and Michelle
Obama, views of the election
Republicans and Democrats feel much more negatively toward the other’s party’s presumptive
presidential nominees than they do toward members of the opposing party. (The surveys were
conducted from early March through early May, before Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump
effectively secured their party’s nominations.)
Republicans’ views of Clinton – and Democrats’
views of Trump – are extraordinarily negative.
Republicans give Clinton a mean, or average,
rating of just 12 on a “feeling thermometer”
ranging from 0 to 100 (where 0 is coldest, 100
warmest). About three-quarters of Republicans
(76%) give Clinton a very cold thermometer
rating (lower than 25), including 59% who give
Clinton a rating of zero.
The average rating for Trump among Democrats
is 11. Fully 82% of Democrats give him a very
cold rating, with 68% giving him a rating of zero
on the 0-100 scale.
Republicans give Democrats an average
thermometer rating of 29 – more than double
the average rating they give Clinton (12). Nearly
half of Republicans (46%) give Democrats a very
cold rating, 30 percentage points less than the
76% who give Clinton a very cold rating.
The average rating Democrats give Republicans
is 31, far higher than their average rating for
Trump (11). And 41% of Democrats give Republicans a very cold rating, half the share that feels
very coldly toward Trump (82%).
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Democrats’ average thermometer rating for Clinton is 76, which is on par with the rating
Democrats give their fellow partisans. But among Republicans, their average rating for Trump
(60) is lower than their average rating for Republicans (68).
Politically engaged
Republicans express more
negative views of Clinton
than do those who are less
politically engaged. By
contrast, Democrats’ views of
Trump vary little by political
engagement.
Nearly nine-in-ten highly
politically engaged
Republicans (89%) – those
who vote regularly and either
volunteer or contribute to
campaigns – give Clinton
very cold thermometer
ratings. That compares with
69% of those who are largely
disengaged politically (those
who do not vote regularly or
are not registered to vote).
Highly politically engaged Republicans are colder
toward Clinton than those who are less engaged
% who rate _____ on a ‘feeling thermometer’ from 0 (coldest rating) to
100 (warmest rating) …
Very cold
Somewhat cold
Political
engagement ...
High
Medium
Low
Political
engagement ...
High
Very warm
Somewhat warm
Among Republicans
Clinton
Trump
89
77
69
3
10
12
37
26
39
17
37
21
Among Democrats
Trump
Clinton
88
Medium
80
Low
83
5
5
4
66
57
47
19
20
22
Notes: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24), somewhat cold (25-49), neutral (50),
somewhat warm (51-75), very warm (76-100). Engagement scale based on voting frequency,
campaign volunteerism and/or contributions. See Appendix A for details.
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Among Democrats, views of
Trump are consistent across levels of political engagement. Fully 88% of highly engaged
Democrats give him a very cold rating, as do 83% of those who not politically engaged.
On the other hand, highly engaged Democrats are more likely than those with lower levels of
engagement to give Clinton warm ratings. Among Republicans, views of Trump differ little by
levels of political engagement.
Though Clinton is viewed more warmly by Democrats than Trump is by Republicans overall, the
contrast is even more pronounced among partisans who are highly politically engaged: While 66%
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of highly engaged Democrats rate Clinton very warmly (and 85% rate her at least somewhat
warmly), just 37% of highly engaged Republicans rate Trump warmly (64% rate him at least
somewhat warmly).
Party affiliation – and leaning – is strongly associated with intention to vote in presidential
elections. Nearly all partisans, and in excess of 85% of partisan leaners, say they will definitely or
probably vote for the candidate of the party
they affiliate with or lean to, regardless of who
Those with ‘cold’ feelings for other side
the candidates are. (These surveys were
more certain at the ballot box
conducted before Trump and Clinton
% of registered voters who will ___ vote for the
Republican/Democratic candidate in November 2016
effectively secured their party’s nominations.)
But those who feel more negatively about the
opposing party (and more warmly toward their
own) are more certain about their choice in
November.
Definitely vote for own party
Probably vote for own party
Among Republicans who
rate Democrats …
Among Democrats who
rate Republicans …
22
76
About three-quarters of Republicans who feel
very coldly toward Democrats (76%) and
almost nine-in-ten Democrats who feel very
coldly toward Republicans (88%) say they will
definitely remain loyal to their party’s
nominee.
Those who feel less coldly toward the opposing
party are less definitive in their intentions and
more likely to say they will “probably” vote for
the party’s nominee. Independent voters, even
those who lean toward a party, are less likely
than partisans to say they will “definitely” vote
for a party’s candidate, though nearly all say
they probably or definitely will. But, as with
partisans, feelings toward members of the
other party are linked to certainty among these
voters.
33
65
9
34
88
56
Very
Smwht Neutral/
Neutral/
Very Somewhat
cold
cold
Warm
cold
cold warm
Among Republican
leaners who rate
Democrats …
42
47
61
69
27
21
Neutral/
Very Somewhat
Very
Smwht Neutral/
Warm
cold cold
cold warm
cold
29
69
27
61
Very Somewhat
Smwht Neutral/
Neutral/
Very
cold
warm
Warm
cold
cold
Among Democratic
leaners who rate
Republicans …
47
51
44
46
58
28
Neutral/
Very Somewhat
Smwht Neutral/
Warm
cold
cold
warm
Note: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24), somewhat
cold (25-49), neutral (50), somewhat warm (51-75), very
warm (76-100).
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
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Republican leaners with very cold feelings for
Democrats are 26 points more certain they will
support the Republican candidate than those
who are neutral or warm (47% vs. 21%).
Among Democratic-leaning independents,
those with very cold feelings (44%) and
somewhat cold feelings (46%) are more likely
to say they will definitely support the
Democrat than those who are not cold toward
Republicans (28%).
Similarly, partisans with highly negative views
of the other party are more likely than those
who feel less negatively to say that it really
matters who wins this fall’s presidential
election.
Overall, two-thirds of both Republicans and
Democrats (67%) say it really matters who
wins the election. But among Republicans who
give Democrats a very cold rating on the
feeling thermometer, 74% say it really matters
who wins the general election. This group of
Republicans is more likely than those with a
neutral or warm sentiment toward members of
the other party to say it really matters (74% vs.
60%).
Wide majorities of those cold to other
party say it really matters who wins
% who say it really matters who wins the presidential
election …
Among Republicans who rate each …
Democrats
Republicans
74
73
68
64
60
60
Very Somewhat Neutral/
cold
Warm
cold
Very Somewhat Neutral/
warm
cold
warm
Among Democrats who rate each …
Republicans
Democrats
78
74
63
58
55
54
Very Somewhat Neutral/
cold
Warm
cold
Very Somewhat Neutral/
warm
cold
warm
Note: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24), somewhat
cold (25-49), neutral (50), somewhat warm (51-75),
very warm (76-100).
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Likewise, Republicans who give members of their own party a very warm rating are more likely
than those who are neutral or cold to Republicans to say it really matters who wins (73% vs. 60%).
The differences are similar among Democrats. Among all Democrats, 66% say the outcome of the
election really matters. Among those who rate Republicans very coldly on the scale, 78% express
this view. Fewer of those who are somewhat cold to Republicans (63%) and those who are neutral
or warm toward members of the other party (54%) say the same.
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And while just over half of Democrats with a neutral or cold rating (55%) or a somewhat warm
rating (58%) toward Democrats say it really matters who wins, fully 74% of Democrats who rate
members of their own party warmly say this.
Republicans feel extremely negatively toward
Barack Obama, but a majority also gives “very
cold” thermometer ratings to Michelle Obama.
Fully 81% of Republicans feel very coldly
toward Barack Obama, including 59% who
give him a zero on the 0-100 scale; 5% rate
him neutrally (50), while just 5% give him a
warm rating.
Nearly six-in-ten Republicans (59%) give very
cold ratings to Michelle Obama; 40% of
Republicans give her a zero. About two-in-ten
(21%) give her a neutral rating of 50; only 8%
rate her warmly.
Republican views of Barack Obama do not
vary substantially by political engagement,
though the most politically engaged
Republicans are 19 percentage points more
likely than the less engaged to give Michelle
Obama a cold rating (85% vs. 66%).
Most Republicans feel ‘very coldly’
toward Barack and Michelle Obama
% who rate _____ on a ‘feeling thermometer’ from
0 (coldest rating) to 100 (warmest rating) …
Among Republicans
Very cold
Barack Obama
Michelle Obama
NET
Somewhat cold
81
59
5
10
69
Among Democrats
Very warm
Somewhat warm
Barack Obama
68
Michelle Obama
67
86
15
10
NET
83
78
Note: Feeling thermometer ratings: very cold (0 to 24); somewhat
cold (25-49); neutral (50); somewhat warm (51-75); and
very warm (76-100).
Source: Survey conducted March 2-28 and April 5-May 2, 2016.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Democrats have highly positive views of both
Barack and Michelle Obama. Fully 68% rate
Barack Obama very warmly (a rating of 76 or more on the 100-points scale), while 67% give the
same rating to Michelle Obama. Just 7% of Democrats give either of the Obamas cold ratings.
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Acknowledgements
This report was made possible by The Pew Charitable Trusts, which received support for the
survey from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Pew Research Center is a subsidiary of
The Pew Charitable Trusts, its primary funder.
This report is a collaborative effort based on the input and analysis of the following individuals:
Research team
Communications and editorial
Carroll Doherty, Director, Political Research
Jocelyn Kiley, Associate Director, Political Research
Alec Tyson, Senior Researcher
Bradley Jones, Research Associate
Baxter Oliphant, Research Associate
Rob Suls, Research Associate
Meredith Dost, Research Assistant
Hannah Fingerhut, Research Assistant
Shiva Maniam, Research Assistant
Samantha Smith, Research Assistant
Richa Chaturvedi, Research Intern
Zac Krislov, Research Intern
Dana Page, Senior Communications Manager
Bridget Jameson, Communications Associate
David Kent, Copy Editor
Graphic design and web publishing
Peter Bell, Information Graphics Designer
Colleagues from across Pew Research Center contributed greatly to the development and
execution of this report. We would especially like to thank Michael Dimock, Claudia Deane, Scott
Keeter, Cary Funk, Kyley McGeeney, Andrew Mercer and Nicholas Hatley for their methodological
and editorial contributions.
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Methodology
Survey conducted March 2-28, 2016 and April 5-May 2, 2016
The American Trends Panel (ATP), created by the Pew Research Center, is a nationally
representative panel of randomly selected U.S. adults living in households. Respondents who selfidentify as internet users and who provided an email address participate in the panel via monthly
self-administered Web surveys, and those who do not use the internet or decline to provide an
email address participate via the mail. The panel is being managed by Abt SRBI.
Most of the data in this report are based on 4,385 respondents who participated in both the March
2-28, 2016 and April 5-May 2, 2016 waves of the panel (3,962 by Web and 423 by mail). The
margin of sampling error for the full sample of 4,385 respondents is plus or minus 2.3 percentage
points.
Members of the American Trends Panel were recruited from two large, national landline and
cellphone random-digit-dial (RDD) surveys conducted in English and Spanish. At the end of each
survey, respondents were invited to join the panel. The first group of panelists was recruited from
the 2014 Political Polarization and Typology Survey, conducted January 23rd to March 16th, 2014.
Of the 10,013 adults interviewed, 9,809 were invited to take part in the panel and a total of 5,338
agreed to participate4. The second group of panelists was recruited from the 2015 Survey on
Government, conducted August 27th to October 4th, 2015. Of the 6,004 adults interviewed, all
were invited to join the panel, and 2,976 agreed to participate5.
Participating panelists provided either a mailing address or an email address to which a welcome
packet, a monetary incentive and future survey invitations could be sent. Panelists also receive a
small monetary incentive after participating in each wave of the survey.
The Web component of the combined two waves had a response rate of 78% (3,962 responses
among 5,091 Web-based individuals in the panel); the mail component had a response rate of 68%
(423 responses among 625 non-Web individuals in the panel). Taking account of the combined,
weighted response rate for the recruitment surveys (10.0%) and attrition from panel members who
4
5
When data collection for the 2014 Political Polarization and Typology Survey began, non-internet users were subsampled at
a rate of 25%, but a decision was made shortly thereafter to invite all non-internet users to join. In total, 83% of noninternet users were invited to join the panel.
Respondents to the 2014 Political Polarization and Typology Survey who indicated that they are internet users but refused to
provide an email address were initially permitted to participate in the American Trends Panel by mail, but were no longer
permitted to join the panel after February 6, 2014. Internet users from the 2015 Survey on Government who refused to
provide an email address were not permitted to join the panel.
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were removed at their request or for inactivity, the cumulative response rate for the combined two
ATP waves is 3%6.
The ATP data were weighted in a multi-step process that begins with a base weight incorporating
the respondents’ original survey selection probability and the fact that in 2014 some panelists were
subsampled for invitation to the panel. Next, an adjustment was made for the fact that the
propensity to join the panel and remain an active panelist varied across different groups in the
sample. The final step in the weighting uses an iterative technique that matches gender, age,
education, race, Hispanic origin and region to parameters from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2014
American Community Survey. Population density is weighted to match the 2010 U.S. Decennial
Census. Telephone service is weighted to estimates of telephone coverage for 2016 that were
projected from the January-June 2015 National Health Interview Survey. Volunteerism is
weighted to match the 2013 Current Population Survey Volunteer Supplement. It also adjusts for
party affiliation using an average of the three most recent Pew Research Center general public
telephone surveys. Internet access is adjusted using a measure from the 2015 Survey on
Government. Frequency of internet use is weighted to an estimate of daily internet use projected
to 2016 from the 2013 Current Population Survey Computer and Internet Use Supplement.
Sampling errors and statistical tests of significance take into account the effect of weighting.
Interviews are conducted in both English and Spanish, but the Hispanic sample in the American
Trends Panel is predominantly native born and English speaking.
6
Approximately once per year, panelists who have not participated in multiple consecutive waves are removed from the
panel. These cases are counted in the denominator of cumulative response rates.
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The following table shows the unweighted sample sizes and the error attributable to sampling that
would be expected at the 95% level of confidence for different groups in the survey:
Survey conducted March 2-28, 2016 and April 5-May 2, 2016
Weighted
proportion
100%
Unweighted
sample size
4,385
Plus or minus …
2.3 percentage points
Republican
25%
1,145
4.5 percentage points
Democrat
31%
1,548
3.9 percentage points
Lean Republican
18%
796
5.4 percentage points
Lean Democrat
21%
759
5.6 percentage points
Republican – half form
12%
572 (min)
6.4 percentage points
Democrat – half form
14%
723 (min)
5.7 percentage points
High
16%
294
9.0 percentage points
Medium
55%
697
5.8 percentage points
Low
29%
154
12.4 percentage points
High
16%
484
7.0 percentage points
Medium
48%
766
5.6 percentage points
Low
36%
298
8.9 percentage points
Republican registered voters
20%
1,045
4.8 percentage points
Democratic registered voters
23%
1,341
4.2 percentage points
Group
Total sample
Political engagement
among Republicans
Political engagement
among Democrats
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Survey conducted April 12-19, 2016
Some of the analysis in this report is based on telephone interviews conducted April 12-19, 2016
among a national sample of 2,008 adults, 18 years of age or older, living in all 50 U.S. states and
the District of Columbia (505 respondents were interviewed on a landline telephone, and 1,503
were interviewed on a cell phone, including 914 who had no landline telephone). The survey was
conducted under the direction of Abt SRBI. A combination of landline and cell phone random digit
dial samples were used; both samples were provided by Survey Sampling International. Interviews
were conducted in English and Spanish. Respondents in the landline sample were selected by
randomly asking for the youngest adult male or female who is now at home. Interviews in the cell
sample were conducted with the person who answered the phone, if that person was an adult 18
years of age or older. For detailed information about our survey methodology, see
http://www.pewresearch.org/methodology/u-s-survey-research/
The combined landline and cell phone sample are weighted using an iterative technique that
matches gender, age, education, race, Hispanic origin and nativity and region to parameters from
the 2014 Census Bureau's American Community Survey and population density to parameters
from the Decennial Census. The sample also is weighted to match current patterns of telephone
status (landline only, cell phone only, or both landline and cell phone), based on extrapolations
from the 2015 National Health Interview Survey. The weighting procedure also accounts for the
fact that respondents with both landline and cell phones have a greater probability of being
included in the combined sample and adjusts for household size among respondents with a
landline phone. The margins of error reported and statistical tests of significance are adjusted to
account for the survey’s design effect, a measure of how much efficiency is lost from the weighting
procedures.
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The following table shows the unweighted sample sizes and the error attributable to sampling that
would be expected at the 95% level of confidence for different groups in the survey:
Survey conducted April 12-19, 2016
Unweighted
sample size
2,008
Plus or minus …
2.5 percentage points
Republican
546
4.8 percentage points
Democrat
611
4.5 percentage points
Group
Total sample
Sample sizes and sampling errors for other subgroups are available upon request.
In addition to sampling error, one should bear in mind that question wording and practical
difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of opinion polls.
Pew Research Center undertakes all polling activity, including calls to mobile telephone numbers,
in compliance with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and other applicable laws.
Pew Research Center is a nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization and a subsidiary of The
Pew Charitable Trusts, its primary funder.
© Pew Research Center, 2016
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Appendix A: Measures and scales
Feeling thermometer
categories in this report
The survey measured ratings toward a number of groups and
people in the U.S. on a “feeling thermometer” ranging from zero
(“as cold and negative as possible”) to 100 (“as warm and
positive as possible”), with 50 as the neutral point. See topline
for full question wording.
Cold
0-49
Very cold
0-24
Somewhat cold
25-49
Neutral
50
Warm
Throughout this report, ratings on the scale are grouped
according to intensity as shown in the accompanying table.
51-100
Somewhat warm
51-75
Very warm
76-100
Throughout this report, a three category measure of political engagement is used.
Political engagement categories used in this report
% of
public
% of
Republicans
% of
Democrats
High engagement:
Registered to vote, say they always or nearly always vote, and in the
past year have volunteered for or contributed to a campaign
13
16
16
Medium engagement:
Registered to vote, say they always or nearly always vote, and have
NOT volunteered for or contributed to a campaign in the past year
46
55
48
41
29
36
Low engagement:
Not registered to vote or vote infrequently
The survey measured respondents’ proximity to the Republican and Democratic policy positions
on nine issues. For each issue, respondents could say whether they strongly agree or somewhat
agree with either the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, or that they don’t agree with
either party. Seven of these issues (health care policy; policies to deal with illegal immigration;
policies to deal with climate change; policies to deal with ISIS, the Islamic militant group in Iraq
and Syria; abortion policy; gun policy; and policies to deal with the economy) were asked of all
respondents and a scale of policy agreement was constructed. For instance, among Democrats,
42% agree (strongly or somewhat) with the Democratic Party on seven out of seven issues. Among
Republicans, 38% agree with the Republican Party on seven out of seven issues.
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The ideological consistency scale is composed of 10 questions asked on Pew Research Center
surveys going back to 1994 to gauge peoples’ ideological worldview. The questions cover a range of
political values including attitudes about size and scope of government, the social safety net,
immigration, homosexuality, business, the environment, foreign policy and racial discrimination.
The scale is designed to measure how consistently liberal or conservative people’s responses are
across these various dimensions of political thinking (what some refer to as ideological
‘constraint’). Though this measure is correlated with self-identified ideology, where people fall on
this scale does not always align with whether they think of themselves as liberal, moderate or
conservative.
The questions in the scale were asked on the initial recruitment surveys (either the 2014 Political
Polarization and Typology Survey, conducted January 23rd to March 16th, 2014 or the 2015
Survey on Government, conducted August 27th to October 4th, 2015).
For more detail on the items in the scale, see here.
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Appendix B: Topline questionnaire
2016 PEW RESEARCH CENTER’S AMERICAN TRENDS PANEL
WAVE 15 March & WAVE 16 April
COMBINED FINAL TOPLINE
WAVE 15: March 2nd – March 28th, 2016
WAVE 16: April 5th – May 2nd, 2016
TOTAL N=4,3851
WEB RESPONDENTS N=3,962
MAIL RESPONDENTS N=4232
WAVE 15 QUESTIONS
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS HELD FOR FUTURE RELEASE
ASK WAVE 15:
THERMO
We'd like to get your feelings toward a number of groups in the U.S. on a “feeling
thermometer.” A rating of zero degrees means you feel as cold and negative as possible. A
rating of 100 degrees means you feel as warm and positive as possible. You would rate the
group at 50 degrees if you don’t feel particularly positive or negative toward the group.
How do you feel toward [INSERT ITEM; RANDOMIZE a & b, BUT ALWAYS ASK
TOGETHER AS A PAIR; RANDOMIZE REST]? [Enter the number in the box between 0 and
100 that reflects your feelings]
a.
Republicans
Mar 2-28, 2016
b.
Democrats
Mar 2-28, 2016
NET
Cold
0-49
Very
cold
0-24
Somewhat
cold
25-49
Neutral
50
NET
Warm
51-100
Somewhat
warm
51-75
Very
warm
76-100
No
answer
Mean
40
25
15
29
30
13
16
2
46
34
22
12
26
38
15
23
2
51
36
22
25
15
9
6
2
35
5
1
12
81
10
70
1
82
14
13
28
43
11
33
2
58
22
11
36
29
7
22
2
49
THERMOc-f HELD FOR FUTURE RELEASE
ASK WAVE 15 FORM 1 [N=2,240]:
g. Elected officials in
Washington
Mar 2-28, 2016
58
h.
People in the military
Mar 2-28, 2016
6
ASK WAVE 15 FORM 2 [N=2,145]:
i. Evangelical Christians
Mar 2-28, 2016
27
j.
1
2
Atheists
Mar 2-28, 2016
33
This data is based on respondents who completed both Wave 15 and Wave 16 of the American Trends Panel.
Question wording in this topline is that from the web version of the survey. Question wording and format was adapted for
the paper questionnaire delivered by mail; this questionnaire is available on request. All questions asked in both modes
unless noted.
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ASK WAVE 15 FORM 1 [N=2,240]:
VIEWSCHAR
Which of these statements comes closer to your view, even if neither is exactly right?
[RANDOMIZE]
Mar 2-28
2016
65
32
3
How someone thinks about politics says a lot about the kind of person they
are
How someone thinks about politics doesn’t say much about the kind of
person they are
No answer
ASK WAVE 15 FORM 2 [N=2,145]:
AGREEPOL
When people hold different views about politics … [RANDOMIZE]
Mar 2-28
2016
35
63
2
It generally means that they won’t agree about other topics
It generally doesn’t say a lot about how much they’ll agree on other topics
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
PARTYDIFF
How different, if at all, are the policy positions of the [RANDOMIZE: Democratic and
Republican/Republican and Democratic] parties …
Mar 2-28
2016
51
34
10
4
1
Very different
Somewhat different
Not too different
Not at all different
No answer
ASK IF “VERY-NOT TOO DIFFERENT” (PARTYDIFF=1-3) [N=4,259]:
PARTYDIFFA
Compared with 10 years ago, would you say the policy differences between the [MATCH
ABOVE: Democratic and Republican/Republican and Democratic] parties today are …
[REVERSE ORDER FOR HALF SAMPLE]
Mar 2-28
2016
95
54
32
8
1
4
1
Very/Somewhat/Not too different
Bigger
About the same
Smaller
No answer
Not at all different
No answer
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THOUGHT, MATTERS, DEMNOMOE, REPNOMOE AND VOTEPARTY ASKED IN BOTH WAVES. SEE PAGES
11-13 FOR COMPLETE RESULTS
ASK WAVE 15:
Now, thinking about the people you talk with, whether in person, over the phone, or electronically…
TALKPOL
How often do you discuss government and politics with others?
Mar 2-28
2016
23
36
17
23
1
Nearly every day
A few times a week
A few times a month
Less often
No answer
Mar 19-Apr 29
20143
13
29
26
32
*
ASK WAVE 15:
FAMTALK
When you were growing up, did your close family talk about government and politics at
home...
Mar 2-28
2016
13
35
33
18
1
A lot
Some
Not much
Not at all
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TALKDISA
In your experience, when you talk about politics with people who you DISagree with, do you
generally find it to be … [RANDOMIZE]
Mar 2-28
2016
51
46
2
Interesting and informative
Stressful and frustrating
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TALKCMN
And in your experience, when you talk about politics with people who you DISagree with, do
you usually find that … [RANDOMIZE]
Mar 2-28
2016
36
61
3
3
You have more in common politically than you thought
You have less in common politically than you thought
No answer
In Wave 1 (Mar 19-Apr 29, 2014), 407 non- Internet panelists were surveyed by phone.
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PROGRAMMING NOTE: RANDOMIZE DEMOCRATIC PARTY (IDEODEM) AND REPUBLICAN PARTY
(IDEOREP) QUESTIONS
ASK WAVE 15:
IDEODEM
In politics, people sometimes talk about liberal and conservative. Where would you place the
DEMOCRATIC PARTY on a scale from 0 to 10 where 10 means very liberal and 0 means very
conservative? [RANDOM HALF VERY LIBERAL AT THE TOP AND VERY CONSERVATIVE
AT THE BOTTOM, OTHER HALF SEES THE REVERSE, ALWAYS KEEPING 10 AT THE TOP
AND 0 AT THE BOTTOM EACH TIME]4
Please click below where you would place the DEMOCRATIC PARTY on the scale below.
Mar 2-28
2016
24
7
13
14
9
17
3
3
2
1
4
3
10- Very liberal
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0- Very conservative
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
IDEOREP
In politics, people sometimes talk about liberal and conservative. Where would you place the
REPUBLICAN PARTY on a scale from 0 to 10 where 10 means very liberal and 0 means very
conservative? [RANDOM HALF VERY LIBERAL AT THE TOP AND VERY CONSERVATIVE
AT THE BOTTOM, OTHER HALF SEES THE REVERSE, ALWAYS KEEPING 10 AT THE TOP
AND 0 AT THE BOTTOM EACH TIME]
Please click below where you would place the REPUBLICAN PARTY on the scale below.
Mar 2-28
2016
4
1
2
4
4
15
8
14
14
9
21
3
4
10- Very liberal
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0- Very conservative
No answer
Responses to IDEODEM, IDEOREP and IDEOSELF were recoded for the half-sample that received “10- very conservative” and
“0- very liberal” to match the reverse order.
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
ASK WAVE 15:
IDEOSELF
Where would you place YOURSELF on this same scale from 0 to 10? [RANDOM HALF VERY
LIBERAL AT THE TOP AND VERY CONSERVATIVE AT THE BOTTOM, OTHER HALF SEES
THE REVERSE, ALWAYS KEEPING 10 AT THE TOP AND 0 AT THE BOTTOM EACH TIME]
Mar 2-28
2016
8
4
8
9
7
22
8
7
8
5
12
3
10- Very liberal
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0- Very conservative
No answer
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS HELD FOR FUTURE RELEASE
Now on a different subject, thinking about some traits that might describe some people and not others…
ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITREPa
Compared to other Americans, would you say Republicans are…
Mar 2-28
2016
23
5
18
55
20
13
6
2
NET More moral
A lot more moral
Somewhat more moral
About the same
NET More IMmoral
Somewhat more IMmoral
A lot more IMmoral
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITREPb
Compared to other Americans, would you say Republicans are…
Mar 2-28
2016
28
9
19
60
9
7
3
2
NET More hard-working
A lot more hard-working
Somewhat more hard-working
About the same
NET More lazy
Somewhat more lazy
A lot more lazy
No answer
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ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITREPc
Compared to other Americans, would you say Republicans are…
Mar 2-28
2016
15
4
11
37
46
27
19
2
NET More open-minded
A lot more open-minded
Somewhat more open-minded
About the same
NET More closed-minded
Somewhat more closed-minded
A lot more closed-minded
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITREPd
Compared to other Americans, would you say Republicans are…
Mar 2-28
2016
17
4
13
58
23
15
8
2
NET More honest
A lot more honest
Somewhat more honest
About the same
NET More DIShonest
Somewhat more DIShonest
A lot more DIShonest
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITREPe
Compared to other Americans, would you say Republicans are…
Mar 2-28
2016
18
5
14
61
19
13
6
2
NET More intelligent
A lot more intelligent
Somewhat more intelligent
About the same
NET More UNintelligent
Somewhat more UNintelligent
A lot more UNintelligent
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITDEMa
Compared to other Americans, would you say Democrats are…
Mar 2-28
2016
19
6
13
57
22
14
8
2
NET More moral
A lot more moral
Somewhat more moral
About the same
NET More IMmoral
Somewhat more IMmoral
A lot more IMmoral
No answer
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ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITDEMb
Compared to other Americans, would you say Democrats are…
Mar 2-28
2016
17
7
10
60
20
15
6
2
NET More hard-working
A lot more hard-working
Somewhat hard-working
About the same
NET More hard-working
Somewhat more hard-working
A lot more hard-working
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITDEMc
Compared to other Americans, would you say Democrats are…
Mar 2-28
2016
38
12
26
36
25
14
11
2
NET More open-minded
A lot more open-minded
Somewhat more open-minded
About the same
NET More closed-minded
Somewhat more closed-minded
A lot more closed-minded
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITDEMd
Compared to other Americans, would you say Democrats are…
Mar 2-28
2016
17
5
11
60
21
13
8
2
NET More honest
A lot more honest
Somewhat more honest
About the same
NET More DIShonest
Somewhat more DIShonest
A lot more DIShonest
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
TRAITDEMe
Compared to other Americans, would you say Democrats are…
Mar 2-28
2016
21
7
15
62
15
11
3
2
NET More intelligent
A lot more intelligent
Somewhat more intelligent
About the same
NET More UNintelligent
Somewhat more Unintelligent
A lot more Unintelligent
No answer
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[PROGRAMMING NOTE: RANDOMIZE ORDER OF REPDESC AND DESCDEM]
ASK WAVE 15:
DESCREP
Would you say the term Republican describes you…
Mar 2-28
2016
35
8
27
63
29
33
2
NET Well
Very well
Fairly well
NET Not well
Not too well
Not at all well
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
DESCDEM
Would you say the term Democrat describes you…
Mar 2-28
2016
41
11
30
57
27
30
2
NET Well
Very well
Fairly well
NET Not well
Not too well
Not at all well
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
AGREEREP
Thinking about political issues, how often do you tend to agree with the positions of the
Republican Party?
Mar 2-28
2016
5
21
24
26
22
2
Almost always
More than half of the time
About half of the time
Less than half of the time
Almost never
No answer
ASK WAVE 15:
AGREEDEM
Thinking about political issues, how often do you tend to agree with the positions of the
Democratic Party?
Mar 2-28
2016
8
25
24
22
20
2
Almost always
More than half of the time
About half of the time
Less than half of the time
Almost never
No answer
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
ASK WAVE 15:
FAMILYRD
Now thinking back to when you were growing up, would you say your close family …
Mar 2-28
2016
22
25
19
14
19
2
Almost always supported Democratic candidates
Mostly supported Democratic candidates
Mostly supported Republican candidates
Almost always supported Republican candidates
None of the above
No answer
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS HELD FOR FUTURE RELEASE
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
WAVE 16 QUESTIONS
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS HELD FOR FUTURE RELEASE
ASK WAVE 16:
NEIGHBORTRAIT
If a new person moved to your community, would it make it easier or harder for you to get
along with them if they… [DISPLAY STEM AT TOP OF EACH PAGE AND FOUR ITEMS
PER PAGE (SEE BLOCKS BELOW); RANDOMIZE ORDER OF ITEMS ON EACH PAGE
AND RANDOMIZE ORDER OF BLOCKS WITHIN FORM]
A lot
easier
Somewhat
easier
Neither
easier
nor
harder
NET
Harder
Somewhat
harder
A lot
harder
No
answer
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 1 [N=2,249]:
a.F1 Were a Republican
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
17
6
11
67
15
12
3
1
b.F1 Were a Democrat
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
18
6
12
69
10
8
3
2
c.F1 Owned guns
Apr 5- May 2, 2016
16
7
9
62
22
14
8
1
d.F1 Had a college degree
Apr 5- May 2, 2016
26
8
18
71
2
1
*
1
e.F1 Liked country music
Apr 5- May 2, 2016
17
7
9
74
8
7
1
1
f.F1 Were gay or lesbian
Apr 5- May 2, 2016
8
3
5
75
16
10
5
1
g.F1 Volunteered in the
community
Apr 5- May 2, 2016
33
11
23
64
2
2
1
1
h.F1 Regularly attended
church
Apr 5- May 2, 2016
26
10
15
65
9
7
2
1
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 2 [N=2,136]:
i.F2 Were a conservative
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
21
7
15
61
17
14
2
1
j.F2 Were a liberal
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
19
5
14
63
17
12
5
1
k.F2 Liked hip-hop
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
13
4
9
68
19
13
6
1
l.F2 Served in the military
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
29
12
18
64
5
4
1
1
m.F2 Had children
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
28
8
21
60
11
9
2
*
NET
Easier
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NEIGHBORTRAIT CONTINUED...
Neither
easier
nor
harder
NET
Harder
Somewhat
harder
A lot
harder
No
answer
NET
Easier
A lot
easier
Somewhat
easier
7
3
5
82
10
8
1
1
o.F2 Liked sports
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
30
11
19
63
6
5
1
1
p.F2 Did not believe in God
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
13
5
8
60
27
19
8
1
n.F2 Never attended
college
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
ASK WAVE 16:
WINLOSE
Thinking about the way things have been going in politics over the last few years
issues that matter to you, would you say your side has been...
Apr 5-May 2
2016
35
59
6
on the
Winning more often than losing
Losing more often than winning
No answer
ASK WAVE 16:
THOUGHT
How much thought, if any, have you given to candidates running for president in 2016?
Apr 5-May 2
2016
52
31
11
5
1
A lot
Some
Not much
None at all
No answer
Mar 2-28
2016
56
28
9
6
1
Mar 10-Apr 6
20155
26
40
23
11
*
ASK WAVE 16:
MATTERS
Thinking about how you feel about the 2016 presidential election and the next president,
where would you place yourself on the following scale?
Apr 5-May 2
2016
57
22
10
9
1
5
1- Really matters who wins
2
3
4 - Doesn’t really matter who wins
No answer
Mar 2-28
2016
65
18
8
9
1
Nov 24-Dec 21
2015
58
22
10
8
1
W10 (March 10 – April 6, 2014) had a minor difference in question wording: “How much thought, if any, have you given to
candidates who may be running for president in 2016?”
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PEW RESEARCH CENTER
[RANDOMIZE ORDER OF DEMNOMOE, REPNOMOE]
ASK WAVE 16:
DEMNOMOE
Thinking about the 2016 presidential election, who would be your choice for the Democratic
nomination for president?
BASED ON DEMOCRATS AND DEMOCRATIC-LEANING REGISTERED VOTERS
[N=1,885]:
First choice6
Apr 5-May 2
2016
45
39
3
13
Hillary Clinton
Bernie Sanders
Other
No answer
Mar 2-28
2016
46
37
4
13
Nov 24Dec 21
2015
46
30
6
18
Aug 11Sept 8
2015
40
21
12
26
Mar 10Apr 6
2015
41
2
19
39
Mar 2-28
2016
68
56
8
13
Nov 24Dec 21
2015
67
45
19
18
Aug 11Sept 8
2015
57
31
30
26
Mar 10Apr 6
2015
51
4
31
39
Any choice (first, second or third choice)
Apr 5-May 2
2016
67
57
6
13
6
Hillary Clinton
Bernie Sanders
Other
No answer
Only candidates who received 1% or higher in the April 5-May 2 survey are displayed. Those who received less than 1% are
coded as “Other”.
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ASK WAVE 16:
REPNOMOE
Thinking about the 2016 presidential election, who would be your choice for the Republican
nomination for president?
BASED ON REPUBLICANS AND REPUBLICAN-LEANING REGISTERED VOTERS
[N=1,701]:
First choice7
Apr 5-May 2
2016
41
24
10
2
1
1
1
7
13
Donald Trump
Ted Cruz
John Kasich
Marco Rubio
Ben Carson
Rand Paul
Jeb Bush
Other
No answer
Mar 2-28
2016
39
23
8
9
2
2
1
4
12
Nov 24Dec 21
2015
30
15
1
12
12
3
4
9
14
Aug 11Sept 8
2015
22
6
2
4
10
3
9
18
25
Mar 10Apr 6
2015
1
5
*
4
5
5
8
35
37
Mar 2-28
2016
51
37
16
21
4
2
2
7
12
Nov 24Dec 21
2015
45
33
3
33
30
5
11
24
14
Aug 11Sept 8
2015
32
15
4
16
22
6
18
38
25
Mar 10Apr 6
2015
2
12
1
11
10
10
16
47
37
Any choice (first, second or third choice)
Apr 5-May 2
2016
52
39
18
3
2
1
1
12
13
Donald Trump
Ted Cruz
John Kasich
Marco Rubio
Ben Carson
Rand Paul
Jeb Bush
Other
No answer
ASK WAVE 16:
VOTEPARTY
Thinking ahead to the presidential election that will take place in NOVEMBER 2016, regardless
of who the nominees from each party are, do you think you will [CATEGORIES IN REVERSE
ORDER FOR RANDOM HALF OF SAMPLE]?
Apr 5-May 2
2016
22
20
21
29
7
7
Definitely vote for the Republican
Probably vote for the Republican
Probably vote for the Democrat
Definitely vote for the Democrat
No answer
Mar 2-28
2016
25
19
20
29
7
Only candidates who received 1% or higher in the April 5-May 2 survey are displayed. Those who received less than 1% are
coded as “Other”.
www.pewresearch.org
88
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
PROGRAMMING NOTE: ASK ALL ITEMS ON ONE SCREEN; INCLUDE INTRO PARAGRAPH AT TOP; DO
NOT USE THERMOMETER IMAGE
ASK WAVE 16:
THERMO We'd like to get your feelings toward a number of people on a “feeling thermometer.” A rating of zero
degrees means you feel as cold and negative as possible. A rating of 100 degrees means you feel as
warm and positive as possible. You would rate the person at 50 degrees if you don’t feel particularly
positive or negative toward them.
How do you feel toward [INSERT ITEM; RANDOMIZE]? [Enter the number in the box between 0
and 100 that reflects your feelings]
NET
Cold
0-49
Very
cold
0-24
Somewhat
cold
25-49
Neutral
50
NET
Warm
51-100
Somewhat
warm
51-75
Very
warm
76-100
No
answer
Mean
51
42
9
10
36
13
23
3
40
a.
Hillary Clinton
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
b.
Bernie Sanders
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
39
30
8
17
41
17
24
3
48
c.
Donald Trump
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
61
53
8
9
27
11
17
3
32
d.
Ted Cruz
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
55
43
12
18
23
11
12
4
34
e.
John Kasich
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
44
32
12
27
22
14
9
6
38
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 1 [N=2,249]:
f.F1 Barack Obama
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
43
39
4
10
44
12
32
3
47
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 2 [N=2,136]:
g.F2 Michelle Obama
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
36
30
6
18
43
9
34
2
51
www.pewresearch.org
89
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
[RANDOMIZE ORDER OF REPRSNTREP AND REPRSNTDEM]
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 1 [N=2,249]:
REPRSNTREP
How well does the REPUBLICAN PARTY represent the interests of people like you?
Apr 5-May 2
2016
40
6
33
58
29
29
3
NET Well
Very well
Somewhat well
NET Not well
Not too well
Not at all well
No answer
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 1 [N=2,249]:
REPRSNTDEM
How well does the DEMOCRATIC PARTY represent the interests of people like you?
Apr 5-May 2
2016
52
14
37
46
24
22
3
NET Well
Very well
Somewhat well
NET Not well
Not too well
Not at all well
No answer
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 2 [N=2,136]:
REPRESENT
Thinking about members of Congress, which comes closer to your view: [RANDOMIZE]
Apr 5-May 2
2016
89
8
3
Members of Congress need to represent the concerns of all people in their
district
Members of Congress only need to represent the concerns of people who
voted for them
No answer
www.pewresearch.org
90
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
PROGRAMMING NOTE: PUT EACH ITEM ON A SEPARATE SCREEN; MATCH ORDER OF “REPUBLICAN
PARTY OR THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY” IN STEM WITH ORDER OF RESPONSE OPTIONS (E.G. IF
“STRONGLY AGREE WITH DEMOCRATIC PARTY” AT TOP OF OPTIONS THEN LIST DEMOCRATIC
PARTY FIRST IN STEM)
ASK WAVE 16:
PTYISSUE
Would you say you agree with the [RANDOMIZE TO MATCH RESPONSE OPTIONS:
Republican Party or the Democratic Party] on the following policy area?
a. Health care policy
Apr 5-May 2
2016
15
17
21
22
23
2
32
43
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
Don’t agree with either party
No answer
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
b. Policies to deal with illegal immigration
Apr 5-May 2
2016
20
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
17
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
21
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
18
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
23
Don’t agree with either party
2
No answer
36
39
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
c. Policies to deal with climate change
Apr 5-May 2
2016
9
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
13
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
20
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
24
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
31
Don’t agree with either party
3
No answer
22
44
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
www.pewresearch.org
91
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
PTYISSUE CONTINUED…
d. Policies to deal with ISIS, the Islamic militant group in Iraq and Syria
Apr 5-May 2
2016
20
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
16
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
19
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
11
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
31
Don’t agree with either party
3
No answer
36
30
e. Abortion policy
Apr 5-May 2
2016
14
12
17
26
27
3
26
43
f. Gun policy
Apr 5-May 2
2016
24
15
15
19
25
3
38
34
g. Policies to deal with the
Apr 5-May 2
2016
15
19
23
16
25
2
34
39
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
Don’t agree with either party
No answer
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
Don’t agree with either party
No answer
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
economy
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
Don’t agree with either party
No answer
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
www.pewresearch.org
92
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
PTYISSUE CONTINUED…
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 1 [N=2,249]:
h.F1 Policies to deal with the gap between rich and poor
Apr 5-May 2
2016
10
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
17
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
21
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
19
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
30
Don’t agree with either party
2
No answer
27
41
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
ASK WAVE 16 FORM 2 [N=2,136]:
i.F2 Policies to deal with the budget deficit
Apr 5-May 2
2016
14
Strongly agree with the Republican Party
17
Somewhat agree with the Republican Party
20
Somewhat agree with the Democratic Party
15
Strongly agree with the Democratic Party
31
Don’t agree with either party
3
No answer
31
35
NET agree with the Republican Party
NET agree with the Democratic Party
www.pewresearch.org
93
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
[RANDOMIZE ORDER OF EMTREP & EMTDEM]
ASK WAVE 16:
EMTREP
How does the REPUBLICAN PARTY make you feel?
[Check all that apply]
[RANDOMIZE ORDER OF BLOCKS AND ORDER OF ITEMS WITHIN BLOCKS; USE SAME
ORDER FOR EMTDEM; ALWAYS DISPLAY “NONE OF THESE” LAST]
Selected
Not
selected/
No answer
46
54
Angry
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
28
72
Afraid
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
30
70
d.
Hopeful
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
25
75
e.
Enthusiastic
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
8
92
f.
Proud
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
5
95
g.
None of these [EXCLUSIVE PUNCH]
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
14
86
a.
Frustrated
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
b.
c.
www.pewresearch.org
94
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
ASK WAVE 16:
EMTDEM
How does the DEMOCRATIC PARTY make you feel?
[Check all that apply]
[RANDOMIZE ORDER OF BLOCKS AND ORDER OF ITEMS WITHIN BLOCKS; USE SAME
ORDER FOR EMTREP; ALWAYS DISPLAY “NONE OF THESE” LAST]
Selected
Not
selected/
No answer
36
64
Angry
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
22
78
c.
Afraid
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
23
77
d.
Hopeful
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
36
64
e.
Enthusiastic
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
11
89
f.
Proud
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
9
91
g.
None of these [EXCLUSIVE PUNCH]
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
14
86
a.
Frustrated
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
b.
IMMCULT2, MARRFAM2, ISLAMVIOLENCE2, ECONFAIR2 PREVIOUSLY RELEASED
www.pewresearch.org
95
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
ASK WAVE 16:
COMP Thinking about how Democrats and Republicans should address the most important issues facing the
country, on a scale from zero to 10 where 10 means Republicans get everything they want and
Democrats get nothing they want, and zero means Democrats get everything and Republicans get
nothing. Where on this scale from zero to 10 do you think they should end up?
[RANDOM HALF “REPUBLICANS EVERYTHING AND DEMOCRATS NOTHING” AT THE TOP AND
“DEMOCRATS EVERYTHING AND REPUBLICANS NOTHING" AT THE BOTTOM, OTHER HALF
SEES THE REVERSE, ALWAYS KEEPING 10 AT THE TOP AND 0 AT THE BOTTOM EACH TIME]8
Please click where you think Democrats and Republicans SHOULD end up on the scale below.
BASED ON REPUBLICANS FOR WHOM “REPUBLICANS EVERYTHING AND DEMOCRATS
NOTHING” WAS A 10 ON THE SCALE [N=505]:
Apr 5-May 2
2016
10
7
17
15
10
29
3
5
1
1
2
1
58
12
10- Republicans get everything and Democrats nothing
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0- Democrats get everything and Republicans nothing
No answer
NET Republicans get more (6-10)
NET Democrats get more (0-4)
BASED ON DEMOCRATS FOR WHOM “DEMOCRATS EVERYTHING AND REPUBLICANS
NOTHING” WAS A 10 ON THE SCALE [N=713]:
Apr 5-May 2
2016
11
7
18
15
11
27
5
2
1
*
2
0
62
11
8
10- Democrats get everything and Republicans nothing
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0- Republicans get everything and Democrats nothing
No answer
NET Democrats get more (6-10)
NET Republicans get more (0-4)
Data shown only for question rotations where one’s own party gets everything was a 10 on the scale due to concerns about
respondent confusion and response error.
www.pewresearch.org
96
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
ETHNCMAJ PREVIOUSLY RELEASED
ASK WAVE 16:
CIVIC_ENG_ACTMOD
a.
Here’s a list of activities some people do and others do not. Please indicate if you
have done each of the following activities in the PAST YEAR.
Selected
Not selected/
No answer
10
90
Worked or volunteered for a political party,
candidate, or campaign
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
5
95
Been an active member of any group that tries to
influence public policy or government, not including a
political party
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
8
92
Attended a political rally, speech, or campaign event
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
NO ITEM b
c.
d.
NO ITEMS e-f
g.
Contacted any elected official
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
18
82
h.
Contributed money to a candidate running for public
office or to a group working to elect a candidate
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
14
86
Displayed a poster or bumper-sticker or worn clothing
or a button related to a political campaign
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
14
86
Publicly expressed your support for a political
campaign on Facebook, Twitter or other social media
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
25
75
i.
j.
www.pewresearch.org
97
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
ASK WAVE 16:
PARTY In politics today, do you consider yourself a:
ASK IF INDEP/SOMETHING ELSE (PARTY=3 or 4) OR MISSING:
PARTYLN
As of today do you lean more to…
Republican
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
25
Democrat Independent
31
31
Something No
else
answer
12
2
Lean
Rep
18
Lean
Dem
21
ASK IF REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT (PARTY=1,2) [N=2,693]:
PARTYSTR
Do you identify with the [Republican/Democratic] Party...
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
Strong
Republican
16
Not strong/
DK
9=25%
Strong
Democrat
21
Not strong/
DK
10=31%
ASK REPUBLICANS (PARTY=1) [N=1,145]:
IDENTITYREP
How much of a reason is each of the following for WHY YOU ARE A REPUBLICAN?
[RANDOMIZE]
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
Major
reason
Minor
reason
Not a
reason
No
answer
64
27
8
1
I think the Democratic Party’s
policies are harmful to the country
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
68
19
11
2
I have a lot in common with
people who are Republicans
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
38
36
26
1
I don’t have much in common with
people who are Democrats
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
26
30
41
2
Ever since I can remember I’ve
been a Republican
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
23
23
52
1
I think the Republican Party’s
policies are good for the country
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
ASK DEMOCRATS (PARTY=2) [N=1,548]:
IDENTITYDEM How much of a reason is each of the following for WHY YOU ARE A DEMOCRAT?
[RANDOMIZE]
a.
b.
c.
Major
reason
Minor
reason
Not a
reason
No
answer
68
25
6
1
I think the Republican Party’s
policies are harmful to the country
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
62
22
13
3
I have a lot in common with
people who are Democrats
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
41
35
21
2
I think the Democratic Party’s
policies are good for the country
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
www.pewresearch.org
98
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
IDENTITYDEM CONTINUED...
d.
e.
I don’t have much in common with
people who are Republicans
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
Ever since I can remember I’ve
been a Democrat
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
Major
reason
Minor
reason
Not a
reason
No
answer
31
31
35
3
36
25
38
1
ASK REPUBLICAN LEANERS (PARTYLN=1) [N=796]:
IDENTITYLN1R How much of a reason is each of the following for WHY YOU LEAN TOWARD THE REPUBLICAN
PARTY? [RANDOMIZE]
a.
b.
c.
d.
Major
reason
Minor
reason
Not a
reason
No
answer
I think the Republican Party’s
policies are good for the country
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
30
49
20
1
I think the Democratic Party’s
policies are harmful to the country
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
55
23
21
1
I have a lot in common with
people who are Republicans
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
19
37
44
*
I don’t have much in common with
people who are Democrats
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
19
31
49
1
ASK REPUBLICAN LEANERS (PARTYLN=1) [N=796]:
IDENTITYLN2R And thinking about why you lean toward the Republican Party but choose not to identify as a
Republican. How much of a reason is each of the following for WHY YOU DO NOT IDENTIFY AS
A REPUBLICAN? [RANDOMIZE]
a.
b.
c.
d.
Major
reason
Minor
reason
Not a
reason
No
answer
I disagree with the Republican Party
on some important issues
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
40
39
21
1
I’m frustrated with the Republican
Party’s leaders
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
52
22
26
*
I don’t care enough about politics
to identify with a party
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
14
22
63
1
I’m just not comfortable being
labeled a Republican
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
20
26
53
1
www.pewresearch.org
99
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
ASK DEMOCRATIC LEANERS (PARTYLN=2) [N=759]:
IDENTITYLN1D How much of a reason is each of the following for WHY YOU LEAN TOWARD THE DEMOCRATIC
PARTY? [RANDOMIZE]
a.
b.
c.
d.
Major
reason
Minor
reason
Not a
reason
No
answer
I think the Democratic Party’s
policies are good for the country
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
34
41
25
1
I think the Republican Party’s
policies are harmful to the country
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
51
26
24
*
I have a lot in common with
people who are Democrats
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
18
39
42
1
I don’t have much in common with
people who are Republicans
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
18
28
54
1
ASK DEMOCRATIC LEANERS (PARTYLN=2) [N=759]:
IDENTITYLN2D And thinking about why you lean toward the Democratic Party but choose not to identify as a
Democrat. How much of a reason is each of the following for WHY YOU DO NOT IDENTIFY AS
A DEMOCRAT? [RANDOMIZE]
a.
b.
c.
d.
Major
reason
Minor
reason
Not a
reason
No
answer
33
36
30
1
I’m frustrated with the Democrat
Party’s leaders
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
28
33
38
1
I don’t care enough about politics
to identify with a party
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
17
20
62
1
I’m just not comfortable being
labeled a Democrat
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
23
27
50
*
I disagree with the Democrat Party
on some important issues
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
ASK REPUBLICANS (PARTY=1) OR REPUBLICAN LEANERS (PARTYLN=1) [N=1,941]:
PTYIDEADEM
Overall, would you say the DEMOCRATIC PARTY has…
Apr 5-May 2
2016
2
19
38
39
1
A lot of good ideas
Some good ideas
A few good ideas
Almost no good ideas
No answer
www.pewresearch.org
100
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
ASK DEMOCRATS (PARTY=2) OR DEMOCRATIC LEANERS (PARTYLN=2) [N=2,307]:
PTYIDEAREP
Overall, would you say the REPUBLICAN PARTY has…
Apr 5-May 2
2016
1
21
41
35
1
A lot of good ideas
Some good ideas
A few good ideas
Almost no good ideas
No answer
ASK WAVE 16:
FRIENDINTER
Thinking about your close friends, would you say… [RANDOMIZE]
Apr 5-May 2
2016
45
52
3
Most of my close friends are interested in politics
Not many of my close friends are interested in politics
No answer
ASK WAVE 16:
FRIENDS_ID
How many of your close friends, if any, are… [RANDOMIZE]
ASK FORM 1 [N=2,249]:
a.F1
Democrats
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
A lot
Some
Just a few
None
No
answer
24
41
22
10
3
b.F1
Republicans
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
17
39
25
16
3
c.F1
Independents
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
11
33
29
22
5
ASK FORM 2 [N=2,136]:
d.F2
Liberals
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
15
35
29
17
4
Conservatives
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
16
36
29
15
4
Moderates
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
10
45
26
14
5
e.F2
f.F2
[RANDOMIZE ORDER OF FORMERDEM AND FORMERREP]
ASK IF NOT CURRENTLY DEMOCRAT (PARTY=1,3,4) [N=2,802]:
FORMERDEM
Has there ever been a time when you have thought of yourself as a DEMOCRAT, or not?
Apr 5-May 2
2016
40
19
21
57
3
NET Yes
Yes, within the last ten years
Yes, but NOT in the last ten years
No
No answer
www.pewresearch.org
101
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
[RANDOMIZE ORDER OF FORMERDEM AND FORMERREP]
ASK IF NOT CURRENTLY REPUBLICAN (PARTY=2,3,4)[N=3,205]:
FORMERREP
Has there ever been a time when you have thought of yourself as a REPUBLICAN, or not?
Apr 5-May 2
2016
33
17
16
64
3
NET Yes
Yes, within the last ten years
Yes, but NOT in the last ten years
No
No answer
ASK IF MARRIED OR LIVING WITH PARTNER (F_MARITAL_FINAL=1,2) [N=2,666]:
PARTNERPTY
Now thinking about your spouse or partner. Is your spouse or partner a...
ASK IF INDEP/SOMETHING ELSE (PARTNERPTY=3,4 or MISSING):
PARTNERPTYLN Would you say your spouse or partner leans more to…
Republican
Apr 5-May 2, 2016
32
Democrat Independent
33
22
Something No
else
answer
11
2
Lean
Rep
16
Lean
Dem
15
ASK WAVE 16:
Thinking about the presidential election that will take place in November... [RANDOMIZE ORDER OF
EMTTRUMP & EMTHCLINTON; RECORD ORDER]
ASK WAVE 16:
EMTPRESTRUMP
How would you feel if Donald Trump won the presidential election in November 2016?
[ROTATE ORDER 1-4 FOR HALF, 4-1 FOR OTHER HALF. RECORD IF
RESPONDENT WAS SHOWN 1-4 OR 4-1]
Apr 5-May 2
2016
14
16
37
29
4
ASK WAVE 16:
EMTPRESCLINTON
Excited
Relieved
Disappointed
Angry
No answer
How would you feel if Hillary Clinton won the presidential election in November 2016?
[DISPLAY RESPONSE OPTIONS IN SAME ORDER AS EMTPRESTRUMP AND
RECORD ORDER]
Apr 5-May 2
2016
15
25
34
22
4
Excited
Relieved
Disappointed
Angry
No answer
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS HELD FOR FUTURE RELEASE
www.pewresearch.org